Worst flooding in decades kills 49 in Vietnam, Hanoi still under water

More flash floods were expected in the northern and central provinces later on Sunday and Monday, weather forecasters said in a flood report.

Floods on Hoang Long, Buoi and Ca rivers in northern Vietnam remained on "very high level," the government's storm and flood control committee said in the report.

State media said at least 18 people were killed by the floods in Hanoi, believed to be the heaviest to hit the capital since 1984. Among the dead were three children on their way to school.

National channel Vietnam Television quoted flood control officials as saying about 49 people had been killed and several remained missing in floods in the country's northern and central regions in the past week.Many streets in downtown and on the outskirts of the capital remained under water and residents were seen fishing on the streets near the city's biggest lake West Lake.

"Food, especially vegetables, is running out fast and prices have gone up four or five times," said Nguyen Thu Thuy whose home has been under water since Saturday.

Television footage on Sunday showed more than 90 percent of the capital's vegetable growing acreage was under up to 1 meter (3 ft) of water.

Many residents in Hanoi abandoned cars and motorcycles in the streets.

Torrential rain continue to pound northern Vietnam on Saturday, weather forecasters said warning of flash floods in six mountainous provinces.

Up to 400 mm 330 mm (16 inches) of rain had pounded Hanoi since Friday, halting traffic, while landslides had eroded many sections of the north-south Ho Chi Minh highway in Thua Thien-Hue province.

Vietnam's main agricultural area, including the Central Highlands coffee belt and the Mekong Delta rice basket, has not been affected by the floods, although rain disrupted coffee harvesting this week.

The harvest is due to peak in mid-November in the Central Highlands, two weeks earlier than usual, but rain could prolong the drying process and damage bean quality, traders have said.

Typhoons and floods have killed several hundred people in northern and central provinces since the start of this year. The flood and storm season ends next month in the central region, which is widely exposed to the sea.

Photo: Reuters