Viet Nam: Tropical Storm Tembin Office of the UN Resident Coordinator in Viet Nam - Situation Update (as of 26 December 2017)

Situation overview

• Tropical Storm Tembin, the 16th tropical storm to threaten Viet Nam in 2017, was first classified as a weak tropical depression on 16 December, and gradually intensified into a tropical storm on 20 December. On 25 December, the storm was downgraded to a tropical depression.
• The storm was expected to hit Viet Nam on late Monday, 25 December 2017, in the Southern provinces of Ba Ria - Vung Tau to Ca Mau in the Mekong River Delta with winds up to 120 km/hour and squalls at a maximum of 150 km/hour, but failed to make landfall. In Viet Nam’s Truong Sa archipelago, the hardest-hit area of Typhoon Tembin, the storm uprooted trees and blew off house roofs, and destroyed parts of the water irrigation system and power grid.
• As of 25 December, more than 650,000 people have been evacuated, using schools and community buildings as temporary shelters for residents. On 26 December, all evacuated people could return to their homes. In addition, pupils, students and workers were instructed to stay at home on 25 and 26 December, and provincial authorities near the shoreline banned all fishing vessels to go out to sea.
• No major damages to infrastructure have been reported so far. All health care services are fully functioning, and no risks to the public health have been recorded. No requests for central assistance have been made by local health authorities.
• The Government of Viet Nam, through the Central Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control (CCNDPC) coordinated preparedness and response activities in the threatened provinces at national level. The Viet Nam Red Cross, as well as the UN, both at country and regional level, and INGOs are closely monitoring the situation, and will provide support if required.