Northern Vietnam is on alert as strong storm Higos closes in

Storm Higos is making landfall in China's Guangdong coast August 19

At 04.00am August 19, Higos was gaining strength, packing winds of 100kph near its centre. It has changed its course and is heading towards Guangdong province instead of the Vietnam-China border as in the previous forecast.

In the next several hours, the storm is making landfall and quickly weakening into a low depression.

Although Higos does not directly strike Vietnam, it is causing heavy rain and rough seas in the northern coast and the Bac Bo (Tonkin) Gulf.

Rain will certainly continue to fall in northern and north-central provinces from August 19-22, with an average rainfall of 150-200mm, even up to 300mm in several localities, meteorologists said August 19.

Several northern mountainous localities have been warned about possible flashfloods and landslides. Local residents in the low-lying region have been encouraged to reinforce their houses or evacuate to higher grounds.

Over the past few days, heavy rain has lashed the northern region, triggering flashfloods and landslides in many localities, especially in Dien Bien, Lao Cai and Yen Bai provinces.