According to the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, in the early morning of October 6, storm No. 11 made landfall in Phong Thanh area (Vangxi province, China). It is forecasted that in the next few hours, the inner city of Hanoi is likely to experience showers and thunderstorms accompanied by tornadoes, lightning, strong gusts of wind, and even localized hail. The meteorological agency warns people to proactively guard against these dangerous weather phenomena.
Monitoring from satellite images, lightning positioning data and weather radar in the past 3 hours shows that convective clouds are forming and developing in the areas of Thuan An, Phu Dong, Phuc Loi, Viet Hung and tend to expand towards the inner city of Hanoi.
In the next 30 minutes to 3 hours, many wards such as Bo De, Long Bien, Gia Lam, Hong Ha, Tay Ho, Ba Dinh, Bach Mai, Vinh Tuy, Vinh Hung... are likely to experience showers and thunderstorms, with the risk of tornadoes, lightning, strong gusts of wind.
On October 6, Lao Dong Newspaper reporters recorded in areas such as Hoang Tung Street (Nam An Khanh urban area), Geleximco (An Khanh commune) and Ecohome (Dong Ngac ward, Hanoi) - frequently flooded areas - showing that people have gathered sandbags to "flood" water, preparing to cope with heavy rain due to the impact of storm Matmo.
According to Mr. Nguyen Van Xuan (a security guard at Ecohome apartment complex, Dong Ngac ward, Hanoi), to prevent rainwater from flooding, the Urban Area Management Board has raised the height of the water barrier around the buildings from 20cm to 60cm. However, in the two recent heavy rains, water still flooded in, causing the entire "oasis" area and hundreds of residents' vehicles to be flooded. Therefore, people still have to prepare hundreds of sandbags to prevent water from overflowing into the basement for parking.
In Nam An Khanh urban area, which is often flooded, since the afternoon of October 5, residents have proactively installed partitions and tarpaulins to limit water from overflowing into the basement. Mr. Nguyen Manh Hung (a resident of An Khanh) has just inspected the partition system and shared: "This area is considered the flood center of the capital. People are used to flooding. Although there is a closed barrier, water can still flood in, so machinery and vehicles have been moved to a safe place.
According to records, many apartment buildings, offices and houses in Hanoi have also prepared partitions and sandbags to prevent flooding. In addition to bringing their belongings up high, people also tied them up to avoid being swept away.
Not only worrying about water overflowing into the tunnel, many Hanoians also plan to park their vehicles in high places to avoid flooding. Ms. Vu Thi Dung (residing in Dong Me, Tu Liem) said: to avoid flooding, she parked her car in Cau Giay area and walked home. "During the flood caused by storm No. 10, I spent 4.5 million VND to repair my car. Today I decided to park my car outside to feel secure, said Ms. Dung.
Similarly, Mr. Ly Hoc (Ecohome resident) also shared: "Every time it rains, water floods in, causing power outages, water shortages, and life is turned upside down. To be safe, I parked my vehicle at a parking lot on the Chem dike, so that when it was flooded, I could walk home to avoid damage.
