9 November 1999 Situation 1. Vietnam is surfacing from its worst floods for forty years. Storm Number 9, otherwise known as Eve, began with torrential rainstorms on 18 October 1999 and continued without respite until 4 November 1999. Uncontrollable flood waters combined with landslides to inflict severe damage on roads, dykes and infrastructure. At the height of the floods the streets of Hue, in the worst affected province of Thua Thien Hue, ran with up to 3 metres of water, and telecommunications there and elsewhere in the eight central provinces ceased to function.
Meteorologists predict clear weather over the next two days.
Accurate figures are impossible owing to interrupted communication lines, but it is known that more than 8,346 houses have collapsed and another 604,204 others have been affected. 15,000 people have been evacuated. At least 63,726 ha of paddy fields have been damaged by the deluge, and 11,813 ha definitively lost, while 30,985 ha of other crops have been damaged. Figures for livestock losses occasioned by the floods reach as high as 693,154. Huge swathes of farmland have been lost, and widespread food shortages must be addressed.