Summary: The Viet Nam Red Cross (VNRC), with support from the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) office in-country, has requested a DREF allocation of CHF 20,874 in an effort to be better prepared for the imminent arrival of Typhoon Son-Tinh due to make land fall on the evening on 28 October 2012. In consideration of the possible impact that may be caused by Son-Tinh once it strikes Viet Nam, there is the possibility that an emergency appeal for international assistance may be launched, or the DREF operation extended to meet the needs.
This DREF request, as it presently stands, is expected to be implemented over one week. A final report will be made available in February 2013.
The situation
The tropical depression that formed over the Western Pacific Ocean on 23 October 2012, strengthened into Tropical Storm Son-Tinh the next day, battering more than 30 provinces of the Philippines and causing heavy rains, flooding and landslides areas across a broad spread. Son-Tinh has moved across the South China Sea towards central Viet Nam, continuing to intensify and escalated into a typhoon on 28 October 2012.
According to the National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting (NCHMF), Typhoon Son-Tinh is predicted to severely strike the provinces of Nghe An, Thanh Hoa, Ninh Binh, Nam Dinh, Thai Binh and Hai Phong in the north and central Vietnam in the late evening of 28 October 2012 and cause heavy rains in wide areas from Hai Phong to Thua Thien Hue with rainfall from 300-500mm. The monitoring and tracking of Son-Tinh shows that the closer its approach to the coastline, the more strength it gains, something very unusual when compared to events in previous years. This typhoon is also recorded as the fastest moving typhoon expected to affect Vietnam over the past ten years.
An estimation of the population in provinces potentially affected is more than 20 million people. It is expected that more than 5 million may be affected by the typhoon. This could mean more than 500,000 people in need of humanitarian relief. According to reports from Thanh Hoa province, more than 150,000 households located in dangerous areas have been evacuated to safe places. Other provinces are continuing to assess the situation and readying people for evacuation, as necessary.
The Central Committee for Flood and Storm Control (CCFSC) has been calling for urgent meetings for updates on the development of the storm and to provide timely guidance to provinces. The Vietnamese Central Government issued a telegram, urging local authorities in the north and central provinces to take measures to effectively cope in response to the typhoon making landfall.
Viet Nam Red Cross (VNRC) has formed a field team consisting of members of the national disaster response team (NDRT), and a communication and media team, which will be deployed to severely affected provinces.