Vietnam to have six more storms

Vietnam must be ready to expect six to eight more storms this year according to the National Centre for Hydro-meteorology Forecasting.

Vietnam must be ready to expect six to eight more storms this year according to the National Centre for Hydro-meteorology Forecasting.

Nguyen Duc Hoa, deputy head of the centre’s Medium and Long-term Hydro-Meteorological Forecast Office said on August 3 that four storms hit Vietnam last month.

  

Nguyen Duc Hoa, deputy head of the Medium and Long-term Hydro-Meteorological Forecast Office.

Hoa said it was unusual that both storms Talas and Sonca were formed and hit the central region within a week because of the thousands of kilometres long inter-tropical convergence zone. Only in 1994 that five storms and a tropical depression all occurred in July.

It is forecast that a total of 12 to 14 storms will be formed this year, five of which will directly affect Vietnam. During the last months of the year, two more storms will adversely affect the central region.

"The last two storms were not too strong but hard to predict. They were also affected by other storms at sea. Strong storms usually go in a more straight line and at a faster speed," he said.

The El Niño-Southern Oscillation, a naturally occurring phenomenon that involves fluctuating ocean temperatures in the equatorial Pacific, is predicted to last until early 2018. As a result, the average temperature will be 0.5-1 degree higher than previous years. The northern and central regions must prepare for more rains in August and October respectively.

"People should follow the weather forecasts to prepare for unusual weather phenomena which can often occur quickly," he said.