Vamco moves inland across Vietnam after unleashing devastating flooding in Philippines

Dozens of deaths in the Philippines have been blamed on Vamco. As the Philippines work to recover from the devastating flooding, Vamco made another landfall in Vietnam over the weekend.

Satellite loop from Saturday evening, local time, as Typhoon Vamco neared landfall in central Vietnam. RAMMB/CIRA

Vamco made its second landfall in central Vietnam on Sunday, local time, after sweeping across the Philippines on Wednesday and Wednesday night. Just a few days after Vamco made landfall, the Philippines was hit by a magnitude 6.4 earthquake early Monday morning, local time. Damage and aftershocks are expected, according to The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology.

At the time of landfall in Vietnam, Vamco had the equivalent strength to that of a Category 1 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale with maximum sustained winds of 119-153 km/h (74-95 mph). Vamco has since rapidly lost wind intensity and will transition into a tropical rainstorm through the beginning of the week while tracking into northern Laos and Vietnam.

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Prior to landfall, Vietnamese authorities ordered 460,000 people in the country's central region to be ready for evacuation, according to The Guardian.

Through Monday, rainfall will continue to threaten flooding across central and northern Vietnam due to widespread rainfall totals of 200-300 mm (8-12 inches). This region has been repeatedly inundated with heavy rain since the start of October. As a result, rain from Vamco could more easily lead to flooding and mudslides. An AccuWeather Local StormMax™ rainfall of 450 mm (about 18 inches) is expected.

Vamco is a 3 on the AccuWeather RealImpact™ Scale for Tropical Cyclones with another round of heavy rainfall and gusty winds expected in an area that has weathered numerous tropical systems this season. The RealImpact™ Scale is a 6-point scale with ratings of less than 1 and 1 to 5 that is used to classify tropical systems based on wind speed, rainfall amounts and coastal flooding, as well as economic factors.

Prior to reaching Vietnam, Vamco (locally know as Ulysses in the Philippines) raced across the Philippines on Wednesday and Wednesday night with the strength equivalent to a Category 1 hurricane. Sustained winds of around 113 km/h (70 mph) wreaked havoc across the northern Philippines in many areas having already faced devastating blows from Typhoon Molave and Super Typhoon Goni, which plowed through the area in late October and early November.

As of Sunday evening, the Philippine National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said the death toll from Vamco (Ulysses) stands at 67, making it the deadliest storm for the year.

According to a local news network, Vamco made its first landfall around 10:30 p.m. Wednesday, local time, near Patnanungan, a small island to the east of Luzon. At 1:30 a.m., Thursday, local time, Vamco made its final Philippine landfall over General Nakar, the largest municipality on the island of Luzon.

Officials in the eastern portion of Metropolitan Manila were monitoring the Marikina River closely as water levels rose Wednesday night. The first alarm was raised after the river reached 15 m (49 feet) and citizens in low-lying regions were evacuated. Around 3:18 a.m., local time, the third alarm was raised as water levels climbed to 18 m (59 feet) and more evacuations were issued.

Heavy rainfall from Vamco also increased water levels across dams, prompting some locations, including the IPO Dam along the Angat River, to release some of the excess water.

Rescuers use rubber boats to save trapped residents as flood waters rise in the village of Providence in Marikina City east of Manila, Philippines, Thursday. Nov. 12, 2020. The typhoon swelled rivers and flooded low-lying areas as it passed over the storm-battered northeast Philippines, where rescuers were deployed early Thursday to help people flee the rising waters. (AP Photo/Basilio Sepe)

Some residents were caught off guard at the sudden need to evacuate, and the mayor of Marikina, Marcy Teodoro, admitted that there were shortcomings in preparing for this storm. He also appealed to the national government for aid in recovering from the flash flooding.

Due to the widespread flooding, as well as wind damage, the Philippines Department of Agriculture estimate losses at nearly 1 billion Philippine peso that affects over 40,000 farmers.

Before making landfall, at least 2,600 families were evacuated from the province of Camarines Norte before Vamco passed just north.

More than 800 prisoners had to be evacuated in San Mateo after the nearby river reached critical flood level.

Roofs that were ripped from buildings were seen stuck in power lines and several videos from residents have shown transformers exploding across the region.

As of 5 p.m., on Thursday, local time, around 1.19 million customers of Meralco were without power.

Conditions across Luzon gradually improved on Thursday afternoon and Thursday night as Vamco moved away into the South China Sea.

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