Vietnam is bracing for the impact of Typhoon Kajiki, with tens of thousands of people ordered to evacuate from the coastline facing the South China Sea.
The storm, described as “an extremely dangerous fast-moving storm” by the Vietnamese government, is expected to bring heavy rains, flooding, and landslides.
Authorities have mobilized over 16,500 soldiers and 107,000 paramilitary personnel to assist with the evacuation and stand by for search and rescue operations.
As of Monday, around 30,000 people had been evacuated from coastal areas, with plans to evacuate over half a million people in total.
The typhoon, with winds of up to 166km/h (103mph) at sea, is due to make landfall on Monday afternoon. “This is an extremely dangerous fast-moving storm,” the government warned, advising people to take necessary precautions.
Two airports in the Thanh Hoa and Quang Binh provinces have been closed, and dozens of flights to and from the area have been cancelled.
Coastal provinces have banned ships from going out to sea, and those already out have been called back. The waterfront city of Vinh was deluged overnight, with streets largely deserted by morning as residents and business owners sandbagged their property entrances.
Le Manh Tung, a 66-year-old resident of Vinh, expressed concern about the storm’s impact. “I have never heard of a typhoon of this big scale coming to our city,” he said, sheltering alongside other evacuated families at an indoor stadium. “I am a bit scared, but then we have to accept it because it’s nature – we cannot do anything.”
Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha warned that houses run the risk of collapse from the storm, and even high-rise buildings could suffer serious damage.
The storm is projected to move inland across Laos and northern Thailand after making landfall in Vietnam.
The typhoon has already affected China’s Hainan Island, where around 20,000 residents were evacuated. Although the province downgraded its typhoon and emergency response alerts on Monday morning, authorities warned of heavy rain and isolated storms in cities in the southern part of the province.
Vietnam is prone to storms that can be deadly and trigger dangerous flooding and mudslides.
In the first seven months of 2025, more than 100 people were killed or went missing due to natural disasters, according to the Ministry of Agriculture.
Last year, Typhoon Yagi killed about 300 people and caused property damage of approximately $3.3 billion.