Goni en route to Vietnam after deadly strike in Philippines

Adam Douty
·3 min read

Goni slammed into the eastern Philippines on Saturday night, local time as a super typhoon with maximum sustained winds equivalent to a strong Category 4 hurricane in the Atlantic and East Pacific basins. At 4:50 a.m., local time, Super Typhoon Goni made its first landfall near Bato, Catanduanes, according to Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA).

At least 20 deaths have been blamed on the torrential rainfall, dangerous winds and devastating storm surge from Goni, most occurring in the province of Albay, according to Reuters.

Super Typhoon Goni lurks to the east of the Philippines Saturday afternoon, Oct. 31, 2020, local time. A well-defined eye can be seen on satellite. (AccuWeather)

After desolating parts of the Philippines over the weekend, Tropical Storm Goni emerged over the South China Sea on Monday. The storm has since tracked to the west and is expected to make another landfall in southern Vietnam by the end of the week.

CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP

Despite pushing through an area of light wind shear, the waters are cool, having been disrupted by several tropical systems in recent weeks. This may cause the storm to lose wind intensity before reaching the coast.

Despite the lose of wind intensity, the storm is expected to bring another round of tropical downpours and gusty winds to central and southeastern Vietnam through the end of the week. Central Vietnam has been the target of most of the tropical systems that disturbed the South China Sea in recent weeks.

Widespread rainfall of 50-100 mm (2-4 inches) is expected to encompass central and southeastern Vietnam during this time. Near Goni's track, a more concentrated area of 100-200 mm (4-8 inches) of rain is expected, with an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 350 mm (14 inches) possible.

With much of eastern Vietnam already recovering from recent heavy rainfall from tropical storms, rainfall from Goni is expected to slow recovery and potentially lead to new flooding and mudslides.

With Goni expected to be a tropical depression at landfall, widespread wind damage is not expected to be a significant concern. Wind gusts of 65-95 km/h (40-60 mph) near the center of the storm can cause minor structural damage and power outages across southeastern Vietnam. An AccuWeather Local StormMax™ wind gust of 95 km/h (60 mph) is possible along the immediate coast.

Due to its expected impacts in Vietnam, Goni is a 1 on the AccuWeather RealImpact™ Scale for Tropical Cyclones. The AccuWeather RealImpact™ Scale is a 6-point scale with ratings of less than one and 1 to 5. In contrast to the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale, which classifies storms by wind speed only, the AccuWeather RealImpact™ Scale is based on a broad range of important factors, including wind speed, flooding rain, storm surge and economic damage and loss.

Once inland, Goni is expected to quickly become a tropical rainstorm as it loses organization. Locally heavy rain can spread into southern Laos and eastern Cambodia during the end of the week, though the threat for flooding is expected to diminish in these areas.

Meanwhile, Severe Tropical Storm Atsani, also known as Siony in the Philippines, is spinning across the Philippine Sea. After stalling over the Philippine Sea during the middle of the week, Atsani may take a path toward southern Taiwan late in the week.

Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.