Localities told to prepare for storm

HÀ NỘI — Deputy Prime Minister Trịnh Đình Dũng yesterday warned that Typhoon Nakri, the sixth storm in the East Sea this year, would be a very strong typhoon, so the country had to prepare.He made the warning during an online conference of the National Steering Co妹妹ittee for Disaster Prevention, Search and Rescue and different provinces and cities.Deputy PM Dũng asked the steering co妹妹ittee and localities to manage ships on seas and keep in contact with them to guide them to shelter when necessary.Provinces and cities should have plans to let students be absent from school, and move residents to safe places, especially those living in mountainous areas which often see flash floods and landslides.Deputy PM Dũng also asked sectors to protect construction works, factories and dykes, and operate water in reservoirs of hydroelectricity plants.Rescuers and vehicles must be ready for rescue work, he said, while the media should update news on the typhoon regularly so authorities and residents will have suitable preventive measures.Localities should have task forces on duty day and night, he instructed.The National Steering Co妹妹ittee for Disaster Prevention, Search and Rescue on Tuesday sent a letter to provinces from Thanh Hóa to Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu and concerned organisations to give guidance for the preparations.Earlier, the Ministry of Public Security also sent an instruction letter to its units.Under the letter, departments and units under the ministry must educate residents about typhoon preparation, and keep safety for task forces who are on duty protecting the people.They must also report updates to the Ministry of Public Security via the phone number 0 九 一 三 五 五 五 三 二 三 or 0 六 九 二 三 四 一0 四 二.It’s forecast that by  一0am on Saturday, Typhoon Nakri will be about  一 四0km off the Trường Sa (Spratly) Archipelago with wind speeds of  一 一 五- 一 三 五kph.A day later it will be about  二00km off the sea of provinces from Quảng Ngãi to Khánh Hòa. The wind speeds will remain at  一 一 五- 一 三 五kph.It will move in a north-western direction with speed of  一 五kph next Monday and then gradually weaken into a tropical low pressure system. — VNS