Nearly 200 people have died in Vietnam in the aftermath of Typhoon Yagi and more than 125 are missing as flash floods and landslides take their toll, state media reported on Thursday.
In the capital, flood waters from the Red River receded slightly but many areas were still inundated.
In Hanoi’s Tay Ho district, people waded through muddy brown water above their knees to make their way along one street, some still wearing their bicycle and motorcycle helmets after abandoning their vehicles along the way.
A few paddled along the road in small boats as empty water bottles, a styrofoam cooler, and other flotsam drifted by; one man pushed his motorbike toward the drier ground in an aluminum sloop.
Pedestrians hiked up their shorts as high as possible to avoid being soaked by the wake caused by a delivery truck powering its way through the water.
Yagi was the strongest typhoon to hit Southeast Asian countries in decades. It landed on Saturday with winds of up to 149 kph (92 mph). Despite weakening on Sunday, downpours continued and rivers remain dangerously high.
The flooding in Hanoi has been reportedly the worst in two decades and has led to widespread evacuations.
Hundreds of rescue personnel worked tirelessly Wednesday to search for survivors. Still, as of Thursday morning 53 villagers remained missing, VNExpress reported, while seven more bodies were found, bringing the death toll there to 42.
