After the Prime Minister issued an official dispatch on September 3, northern and central localities, especially coastal localities of Quang Ninh, Hai Phong, Nam Dinh, Thanh Hoa, Quang Ngai, and Thua Thien-Hue worked out urgent response plans.

Among measures to be put in place, the localities tried to inform fishing vessels still out at sea about Yagi’s tracks and nearby storm shelters; reinforce fishing cages and public works; and devise resident evacuation plans from areas at risk of severe flooding, flashfloods and landslides, especially in river mouths and coastal areas.

The past hours have seen Yagi constantly intensify its force. At 7a.m. on September 3, Yagi was swirling around the waters north-east of the East Sea, packing winds of 117kph near its centre, according to the National Centre for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting.

Yagi is forecast to move west and northwest at a speed of 15kph and regain further strength before moving into the Gulf of Tonkin on September 6-7.

Dr. Nguyen Ngoc Huy, a climate change and disaster warning expert, said Yagi is expected to rapidly intensify into a Typhoon category on September 4 and a Super Typhoon category on September 5 before pounding the Leizhou Peninsula and Hainan Island in China.  

Meanwhile, Vu Anh Tuan, an official of the Centre for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting, said the centre has developed two scenarios indicating that Yagi would have a direct impact on Vietnamese waters.

“This is a very powerful storm. Besides strong gusts, it will generate tidal surges of 7-9 meters high, directly affecting ships at sea. It could even sink large vessels,” warned Tuan.

When the typhoon makes landfall, its circulation will be extensive, impacting northern and central localities. It will bring heavy rain to the northern region, and the heavy rain area will expand to localities from Thanh Hoa to Thua Thien - Hue. Heavy rainfall could cause flash floods and landslides in mountainous areas, and flooding in urban areas.