Border guards in Hướng Lập Border Station in the central province of Quảng Trị set up warning signs in areas flooded due to increasing water levels in Hướng Lập Commune. — VNA/VNS Photo Thanh Thủy

HÀ NỘI — Heavy rain is expected to blanket northern and north-central provinces from Saturday to Tuesday due to storm Lionrock – the seventh storm that has entered the East Sea this year, according to the National Hydrometeorological Forecast Centre.

Speaking at a meeting on storm prevention and control on Friday, deputy director of the centre Hoàng Phúc Lâm said that from Saturday afternoon, northeastern provinces will see heavy rain with rainfall of 150-200mm and more than 250mm in some areas.

From Sunday, northwestern provinces will see rain with rainfall of 50-150mm and more than 150mm in some areas.

Meanwhile, north-central provinces like Thanh Hóa, Nghệ An, Hà Tĩnh and Quảng Bình will see rainfall of 150-350mm and more than 350mm in some areas, causing a high risk of flash floods and landslides in mountainous areas as well as flooding in low and riverside areas.

At 10am on Friday, the eye of the storm was about 130km south – southeast of China’s Hainan Island with a wind speed of 60-75km per hour.

By 10am on Sunday, the eye is expected to be in the Tonkin Gulf with wind speeds of level 8-9 (60-90km per hour), sometimes reaching level 11 (more than 100km per hour).

The storm is expected to weaken into a low pressure system late Sunday before reaching northern and north-central provinces.

At 4am on Monday, the centre of the low pressure system is expected to reach north-central provinces with the strongest winds of level 6, or up to 46km per hour.

Lâm said that from Saturday night, a cold spell would hit northern provinces, which was one of the factors affecting the direction, strength and rainfall of storm Lionrock when it was entering the Gulf of Tonkin.

At the meeting, northern and north-central provinces were urged to quickly harvest rice and crops.

In areas where rice and crops are not ready for harvest, people must implement measures to protect them.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, nearly 252,000ha of rice in the Red River Delta and coastal areas from Quảng Ninh to Thái Bình provinces is not ready for harvest.

In central provinces from Thanh Hóa to Phú Yên, more than 21,700ha of rice is not ready for harvest.

The Central Steering Committee on Natural Disaster Prevention and Control asked the agriculture ministry to examine and ensure safety for fishing boats, aquacultural growing areas, dykes, reservoirs and crops.

Localities were asked to follow the storm’s developments closely and take measures to respond.

They were also asked to make evacuation plans to ensure safety and COVID-19 prevention and control requirements.

From Thursday, the central province of Quảng Trị has seen heavy rain with rainfall of 50-100mm and 100-200mm in mountainous areas. Water levels in rivers like Thạch Hãn, Ô Lâu and Hiếu have been increasing. Heavy rain also flooded roads, isolating hamlets in communes.

Nearly 290 families with more than 1,600 people in Hướng Hóa and Đakrông districts were evacuated.

The local authorities informed more than 2,300 fishing boats with more than 7,100 crew about the storm. Local farmers received assistance to harvest and protect more than 345ha of rice, 7,800ha of cassava, 1,100ha of plantations and 4,000ha of coffee. — VNS