Barijat forecast to weaken as Mangkhut heads to East Sea

The projected paths of Barijat and Mangkhut (Image: NCHMF)

As of 7am on September 13, Barijat was located at 330 kilometres to the east of Mong Cai in Quang Ninh province, packing winds of between 60 and 75 kilometres per hour, according to the national meteorological agency NCHMF.

The storm is moving westwards at a speed of 15-20 kilometres per hour and is projected to weaken into a tropical depression later in the day, bringing medium to heavy rains to northern Vietnam from the night of September 13 until the next day.

Meanwhile Super Typhoon Mangkhut, packing winds of 200-220 kilometres per hour, is moving in a west-northwest direction and was located roughly 1,100 kilometres to the east-southeast of Luzon Island in the Philippines as of 7am on September 13.

Over the next 3-5 days Mangkhut is forecast to lose its strength as it nears Hainan Island but remains a powerful typhoon, which is highly likely to affect Vietnam’s northern and north central provinces on September 17 and 18, the NCHMF said.

According to the national disaster management agency, border guards in coastal provinces from Quang Ninh to Binh Dinh have informed nearly 34,000 vessels on the developments of Barijat so that they could stay away from the danger zone.

In Quang Ninh province, the provincial disaster management agency has also told the owners of vessels and aquafarms, local residents and tourists to move to safety and reinforce their facilities.

In the capital of Hanoi, the utility responsible for urban gardening is inspecting trees across the city to reinforce weak-rooted trees and trim any rotten branches in order to prevent them from falling due to the effect of Barijat./.

NDO