Rescue and search units at the landslide in Bắc Hà District, the northern province of Lào Cai Province. — VNA/VNS Photo

GENEVA — The Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) has dispatched a team of six experts from the Swiss Humanitarian Aid Unit to Việt Nam and earmark 1 million CHF (about US$1.1 million) to support people affected by Typhoon Yagi in this Southeast Asian country.

The team, comprising specialists in water and sanitation, emergency shelter, and disaster risk reduction, will assist the Vietnamese authorities in assessing needs and formulating short- and medium-term responses, SDC said in a press release on September 12.

The SDC is also arranging to send relief supplies, including 300 family tents and two water distribution systems capable of serving 10,000 people. In the immediate term, the SDC is liaising with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to deliver essential goods financed by Switzerland to the affected areas.

The 1 million CHF-assistance is one of the largest contributors to the Disaster Response Emergency Fund of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC-DREF), which has likewise released funds to support relief operations. Việt Nam is a priority country for the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), which is currently exploring the reallocation of some of its activities to address the needs arising from the disaster.

Typhoon Yagi has wreaked havoc in several Southeast Asian countries. Violent winds – followed by torrential rainfall – battered the Philippines, China and then Việt Nam, causing widespread destruction. The severe weather inundated many localities of Việt Nam and triggered major landslides with mountainous regions being particularly hard-hit. Given the magnitude of the requirements, the Vietnamese authorities issued an appeal for international aid.

The evacuations and other preventive measures implemented by the authorities have helped to minimise the number of victims. Nevertheless, thousands of people required evacuation, and to date, several hundred people are reported dead or missing. Việt Nam has not faced a natural catastrophe of this magnitude in over three decades, according to SDC.

Ambassador of Switzerland Thomas Gass has extended sympathies to the disaster, saying that "As Vietnam faces one of its most difficult challenges in recent time, Switzerland expresses its condolences and compassion. We recognize your pain, your loss and your courage. We’re committed to standing shoulder to shoulder with you as you rebuild your lives and communities." — VNS