When Typhoon No. 3 Yagi hit Northern Vietnam, tourist James Aitken from New Zealand had a memorable experience. Despite the harsh weather with strong winds and continuous rain, Aitken still decided to go out and capture candid photos of Typhoon Yagi.
At the same time, he expressed his gratitude for the enthusiastic support of the hotel staff and the Vietnamese people. He stayed at a hotel on Hang Trong Street, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi.
"The weather was really bad with strong winds and heavy rain. However, the staff at our hotel were amazing! They kept us safe and kept us updated," Aitken shared.
While out taking photos of Hanoi streets during a storm, Aitken was impressed to see the Hanoi community come together to clean up streets littered with fallen trees.
Despite facing harsh weather conditions, Aitken admitted he was impressed by the optimism of the Vietnamese people.
"We've only been here 24 hours and we've felt really welcome. Even in this situation, everyone is so positive and happy. We love it here," Aitken said.
Before that, Aitken and his girlfriend decided to go on a long trip to Vietnam, they had no idea that a big storm would hit Vietnam during this time.
"We were not aware of this storm before arriving, although we knew that we were traveling during the rainy season and that some activities might be affected," the male tourist shared.
Amidst the fierce storm, Aitken and his girlfriend stayed safely in a hotel, with plenty of water and food. They were not too concerned about the situation outside.
The hotel lost power for a short time, but the system was restored soon after the evening of September 7. Aitken said he still felt safe in the hotel.
With Typhoon Yagi now over, Aitken and his girlfriend plan to visit Ninh Binh and Ha Long Bay next week, before continuing on to Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City. He also admitted that they may have to stay in Hanoi longer than expected due to the storm.
Finally, Aitken would like to express his sympathy and concern for the Vietnamese people during this difficult time.
"I hope everyone is safe and I send my best thoughts to the people of Vietnam," he said.
According to the latest update from the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, storm No. 3 Yagi has weakened into a tropical depression.
At 7:00 a.m. on September 8, the center of the tropical depression was at about 21.3 degrees North latitude; 104.7 degrees East longitude, on land in the Northwest region.
The strongest wind near the center of the tropical depression is level 6 (39-49km/h), gusting to level 7, moving west at a speed of 10-15km/h.
From the morning of September 8 to September 9, the Northeast and Thanh Hoa: continue to have moderate rain, locally heavy rain to very heavy rain and thunderstorms with common rainfall of 20-50mm, some places over 100mm; especially in mountainous areas there is heavy rain, locally very heavy rain with common rainfall of 60-120mm, some places over 250mm.
The Northwest region has heavy to very heavy rain with common rainfall of 100-200mm, locally over 400mm.
Inland areas in the North have strong winds of level 6 (39-49km/h), gusting to level 7.
