Southeast Asia braces for floods

Southeast Asia braces for floods

BANGKOK (DPA): Farmers and other potential victims throughout Southeast Asia were working feverishly yesterday to shore up dikes, dig canals and fill sand bags as the first of the season's deadly typhoons began lashing the region.

In Vietnam, tens of thousands of peasants worked to save their homes and rice fields from the annual onslaught of flooding, which officials warn is coming early this year.

Rivers across the country are already rising to hazardous levels and scattered flooding has been reported.

Vietnam's biggest concerns focus on two river systems, the Red River Delta in the north and the Mekong River Delta in the south.

Officials are particularly worried that major flooding in the Mekong Delta could wreak havoc on rice production in the country's main agricultural areas.

The Hong Kong Observatory hoisted the typhoon warning signal Number 1 on Thursday for the first time this year and yesterday the Number 3 strong-wind signal was hoisted.

The observatory predicted that higher strong-wind signals would probably have to be raised during the weekend if tropical cyclone Victor continues on its present course toward the China coast.

The strong winds caused the newly built Tsing-Ma Bridge to be partially closed for the first time.

Worried officials closed all schools and ordered ferry services from Hong Kong Island to the outer islands suspended.

At 4 p.m. local time yesterday (3 p.m. Jakarta time), Typhoon Victor was 460 kilometers south of Hong Kong, packing winds of 65 kilometers per hour. Officials said it was picking up speed and heading north.

The upper deck of the newly built landmark Tsing-Ma Bridge linking the largest outer island of Lantao with the urban area was closed to traffic while the lower deck remained open. Trucks carrying dangerous goods were bared from crossing the bridge.

H.G. Wei of the Hong Kong Observatory said if the cyclone continued its present course it might pass close to Hong Kong today.

The Taiwanese government issued a "flash rain warning" yesterday afternoon as typhoon Victor menaced the South China Sea.

In the Philippines, where tropical storms killed 124 people last year and another 42 so far this year, officials are mounting a nationwide disaster preparedness campaign with special emphasis on the typhoon-prone northern and central regions.

Northern relief officials are particularly concerned about the areas surrounding the 1991 volcanic eruption. The thick blanket of ash around the volcano usually turns to a flowing mass of mud during heavy rainfalls and can bury whole villages.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development is broadcasting television infomercials advising Filipinos to stock up on candles, preserved food and other emergency goods.

In the Thai capital, Bangkok, storekeepers have begun the annual ritual of piling sand bags in front of their businesses to limit flood damage.

National and city officials, including the king, have been working on several elaborate schemes to drain flood water from the city formerly known as "Venice of the East."

According to the Interior Ministry's Disaster Relief Department, flooding in the country's rich agricultural regions killed 158 people last year and caused damage worth more than US$230 million to public property.

Neighboring Laos suffered some of its worst-ever monsoon flooding last year, particularly in the east where farmers are still suffering food shortages blamed on the deluge.