Torrential rains, floods leave 3 missing, wreak havoc in Vietnam

Hanoi, Nov 15 (IANS) Torrential rains since early this week left three people missing in the central region of Vietnam, according to the latest report of the country's National Steering Committee on Natural Disaster Prevention and Control on Wednesday.

Nearly 40 people, including those from military forces, police, and local flood and storm prevention teams, have been mobilised to search for a missing couple believed to have been swept away by the floodwaters in Huong Hoa district, Quang Tri province, Vietnam News reported.

They went to search for goats, but the Nguon Rao stream had risen, preventing them from returning home, Xinhua news agency reported.

Another man in Vinh Linh district disappeared when fishing at the La Nga irrigation lake. His personal belongings were discovered in the area.

More than 1,300 houses in Quang Tri province and Da Nang city were flooded.

The rains also triggered the risks of landslide in mountainous areas, flooding in low-lying areas and the isolation of numerous roads.

Natural disasters in Vietnam left 136 people dead or missing, and injured 130 others in the first 10 months of this year, according to the General Statistics Office.