Prime Minister: Stop meetings to focus on directing response to storm No. 3

Faced with the complicated developments of storm No. 3, with winds that can reach level 10, gusting to level 13, on the afternoon of August 18, visiting, encouraging, and assigning tasks to the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc directed the Center to expand international cooperation and connections, and provide the most accurate forecasts with recommendations on damage caused by the storm.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc gave a speech at the meeting.

The Prime Minister also requested that from August 19, relevant localities, ministries and branches, from the central to grassroots levels, stop meetings to focus on directing response to storm No. 3.

According to the report of the Central Hydrometeorological Forecasting Center, storm No. 3 has a complicated path, on the evening of August 18, the storm will enter the Gulf of Tonkin. After that, the storm will continuously strengthen and will no longer maintain the intensity of level 8, but 12 hours later it can gust to level 12 to level 14. It is expected that on August 19, all sea areas from Quang Ninh to Nghe An may have strong winds. By noon on August 19, the storm may reach the shore.

It is worth noting that the storm's trajectory is forecast to be quite scattered. The storm's detection area can range from Quang Ninh to Nghe An. The entire northeastern region from Hai Phong to Ninh Binh is at higher risk. When it makes landfall, the storm may still maintain its storm level and have strong winds for a long time. The storm's circulation is relatively wide with a radius of up to 200km.

Speaking at the meeting, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc emphasized that forecasting storms and natural disasters is a practical, comprehensive scientific task that requires high intelligence and great responsibility. If this step is done well, the effectiveness of storm prevention and control will be higher, and vice versa if the forecast is not good.

Regarding storm No. 3, the Prime Minister appreciated the Center's increased coordination and collection of information from various sources around the world to have timely and accurate forecasts.

The Prime Minister requested that there must be a unified forecast and information to all sectors and people that the storm is of a major level, with gusts of level 12-13, even 14, and that the deeper the storm goes, the stronger it gets. In case of a major storm and high tide, people must be evacuated to ensure safety.

The Prime Minister directed that contingency plans should be prepared in case the storm hits at a high level and the tide rises, and people living along the coast in some areas should be evacuated. “From tomorrow, all levels, sectors, including the Central Government, will stop all meetings to direct the prevention of storm No. 3. I request that localities, as well as the Central Government, take the time to prevent storms and floods to protect the lives and property of the State and the people,” the Prime Minister stated.

The Prime Minister also directed the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting to, from the experience of previous storms, perfect the coordination process and listen to different sources of information, gather forecast sources from many countries around the world such as the US, Japan, China to make the most accurate forecasts possible. In extreme weather situations, plans must be put in place so that people are not subjective and proactive in prevention and avoidance.

The Prime Minister noted that in addition to the coastal provinces of Quang Ninh, Hai Phong, Nam Dinh, Thanh Hoa, and Nghe An focusing on directing storm prevention and control, the inland provinces such as Hanoi, Hung Yen, and Hai Duong must be on alert and have specific plans, especially plans for the possibility of the storm's path changing.

The Prime Minister also emphasized that this is the time of high tide, the risk of dike breakage is very likely to happen and cause great damage, therefore, in storm prevention, there must be a ready plan to rescue vulnerable dike sections.

Expressing concern that heavy rains from storm No. 3 could cause serious damage to the rice crop that had just suffered damage from storm No. 1, the Prime Minister requested ministries and local agencies to pay attention, provide regular power supply, and quickly repair large pumping centers to discharge water; if necessary, install some intermediate oil pumping stations to support some areas at risk of prolonged flooding causing isolation. In addition, the electricity sector needs to be proactive, on-call, and handle the situation promptly; and provide power to people immediately after the storm passes.

Emphasizing the ultimate goal of protecting people's lives in natural disaster prevention, the Prime Minister also requested ministries, branches and localities to urgently take measures to prevent and combat landslides that can cause large landslides, especially in residential areas. The Prime Minister also requested forecasting agencies to regularly provide forecast information to people and authorities.

On that basis, localities should promote the spirit of “4 on-the-spot” in storm prevention and control; promptly take measures to ensure the safety of houses, save rice, be alert for landslides, dam safety, and even air traffic. The Prime Minister requested that based on the actual situation, if necessary, students should be allowed to stay home from school to ensure safety.

Noting that local ministries and sectors must not be subjective about the unpredictable impacts of storm No. 3, the Prime Minister requested that competent agencies proactively calculate plans, including food, medicine, and environmental sanitation after the storm. Especially since this is only storm No. 3, while it is forecasted that there may be up to 10 storms this year.

The Prime Minister said that storm No. 3 may be big, but with the proactive participation of all levels and functional sectors, especially the accurate forecast of the Central Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, it will contribute to reducing damage to people's lives and property./.

According to Vietnamplus