Typhoon Kajiki, which made landfall in Vietnam earlier this week, has left a trail of destruction, resulting in at least seven deaths in Vietnam and one in Thailand. The storm, which has since weakened into a tropical depression, brought with it relentless heavy rains, widespread flooding, and landslides that have affected thousands of people across Southeast Asia.
The storm first struck Vietnam on Monday evening, hitting the coastal provinces of Nghe An and Ha Tinh with powerful winds. The torrential rainfall that followed led to severe flooding, damaging thousands of homes and leaving much of the capital city, Hanoi, submerged. The city’s roads were turned into rivers, bringing traffic to a standstill as cars and motorbikes were left stranded in the rising waters.
According to a Vietnamese government statement, the typhoon destroyed more than 81,500 hectares of rice fields and 4,500 hectares of other crops. The storm also caused significant infrastructure damage, toppling approximately 21,000 trees and severely impacting power and telecommunication lines, leading to blackouts for nearly 1.6 million people.
As the storm moved west, it weakened into a tropical depression but continued to bring heavy rain to Laos and Thailand. Thailand’s Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation reported widespread flooding and landslides in eight provinces in the country’s northern and northeastern regions. A tragic landslide in the northern city of Chiang Mai resulted in one death and ten injuries, adding to the storm’s grim toll.
Authorities in both Vietnam and Thailand have issued high-risk warnings for flash floods and landslides, urging residents in low-lying and mountainous areas to remain vigilant. The aftermath of Typhoon Kajiki serves as a stark reminder of the increasing intensity of weather events in the region, a phenomenon that scientists have linked to climate change.