Chairman of Nghe An Provincial People's Committee Le Hong Vinh inspects response work to storm Wipha

Accompanying him were: Hoang Quoc Viet - Member of the Provincial Party Committee, Director of the Department of Agriculture and Environment; Colonel Nguyen Cong Luc - Member of the Provincial Party Committee, Deputy Commander of the Nghe An Provincial Military Command, Commander of the Nghe An Provincial Border Guard Command; Ngo Duc Kien - Party Secretary, Chairman of the People's Council of Cua Lo Ward; Cao Minh Tu - Chairman of the People's Committee of Cua Lo Ward.

Traveling by canoe along Lo creek, inspecting Nghi Tan fishing wharf (Cua Lo ward) and continuing to inspect Lam river from Cua Hoi area to Ben Thuy bridge, the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee directly inspected the situation of anchoring and tying boats to avoid storms; at the same time, listened to reports from local leaders and functional agencies on the implementation of response plans.

According to the quick report No. 10 dated July 21, 2025 of the Provincial Border Guard, Nghe An has 2,816 vehicles with 12,644 workers directly exploiting seafood. All vehicles have entered safe anchorage, of which 6 vehicles are taking shelter on Ly Son Island (Quang Ngai Province).

All fishermen on the fishing boat have been brought ashore, leaving only a contingent on standby when necessary and must leave the boat immediately upon warning from the authorities. Coastal aquaculture cages have been reinforced.

Local authorities have asked tourists to absolutely refrain from swimming in the sea. Vulnerable residential areas and areas at risk of coastal and riverine landslides have been inspected and evacuation plans have been prepared in case the situation worsens.

The Provincial People's Committee has requested localities to review and prepare plans to evacuate households in dangerous areas, especially coastal areas and areas at high risk of landslides, flash floods, and deep flooding to safe places.

The Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee requested localities and functional forces to continue to check all boats, rafts, residents and tourists in risk areas; strictly implement storm prevention and control measures. At the same time, all forces must absolutely not be subjective, closely monitor developments, proactively handle all situations, and ensure the safety of people's lives and property.

According to the report of the Standing Office of the Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention, Search and Rescue and Civil Defense of Nghe An province, there are over 1,061 large and small dams. Currently, all dams and reservoirs are being operated by localities and units according to the approved natural disaster prevention plan.

At the same time, the province has 23 hydroelectric reservoirs in operation; of which, 8 reservoirs are operating according to the Inter-reservoir Operation Process on the Ca River Basin (Ban Ve, Khe Bo, Chi Khe, Nam Non, Nam Mo, Ban Ang, Nhan Hac A, Chau Thang), the remaining reservoirs operate according to the single-reservoir process. Ban Ve hydroelectric reservoir is currently at elevation 188.33/200 (corresponding to a capacity of about 1.35/1.83 billion m³). Hydroelectric reservoirs are currently operating normally according to the procedures approved by the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the People's Committee of Nghe An province.

The total number of cages and rafts is 4,040. The total number of temporary houses and watchtowers is 4,008. Currently, all aquaculture farmers in cages, rafts, watchtowers and temporary houses have been relocated to safe shelters.

On the morning of July 19, storm Wipha entered the East Sea, becoming the third storm in 2025, with an intensity of level 10, gusting to level 12. According to the forecast of the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, the storm will continue to strengthen (the strongest wind at sea can reach level 12, gusting to level 15). From July 21-22, coastal areas from Quang Ninh to Thanh Hoa will be directly affected by the storm, causing strong winds and heavy rains in the Northern provinces and the North Central provinces (Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Ha Tinh).

This is a very strong storm, moving quickly, with a wide and dangerous range and intensity of influence on sea and land. On the morning of July 21, storm Wipha entered the northern part of the Gulf of Tonkin. At 10:00, the center of the storm was 190 km from Quang Ninh, 310 km from Hai Phong; 340 km from Hung Yen and 360 km from Ninh Binh.

The strongest wind near the storm's center is level 9, gusting to level 11. During the day, the storm is forecast to strengthen to level 10 - 11, gusting to level 14 when entering the Hai Phong - Thanh Hoa sea area, maintaining its intensity for many hours and causing widespread impacts on land.

Faced with the complicated developments of storm Wipha, on the evening of July 20, Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee, Head of the Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention - Search and Rescue and Civil Defense of Nghe An province Le Hong Vinh signed urgent dispatch No. 21/CD-UBND, directing response to the storm and floods caused by the storm's circulation.