Floods triggered by a tropical storm have killed at least 54 people in central Vietnam, officials said Thursday. Nine others were missing and feared dead, while more than 100,000 have been displaced, AP reported. Ha Tinh was the worst-hit province, with 18 deaths, including eight children. One person was reported missing, said Dao Con Bach, a provincial disaster official. «Communication with some parts of the province is still cut off,» Bach said. «The death toll could rise.» In the Central Highland province of Daklak, three more bodies were recovered Wednesday, bringing the number of deaths there to 14. Seven others were still missing and feared dead, said provincial official Truong Cong Khanh. Twelve people in Quang Binh province drowned, including a rescue worker, said Nguyen Ngoc Dien, a provincial official. Although downpours had decreased and access to most villages in the province restored, more casualties were expected as authorities began to reach affected areas, Dien said. Some 100,000 people were forced to leave their flooded homes, he said, adding rescue workers and the military were rushing food to people. «At present, hunger is something worrying us the most, because for the last few days people had to escape the water and many of them had nothing to eat,» said Dien. In Lam Dong province, flash floods killed at least four people, while a 13-year-old boy was killed by a falling tree, said Duong Thanh Hung, a provincial official. Five people also died in four other provinces including Nghe An, Gia Lai, Phu Yen and Dac Nong. Another victim was reported missing in Dac Nong, disaster officials said. The floods have disrupted north-south rail service since Tuesday, with sections of train tracks in three central provinces submerged or damaged, the Vietnam Railway Corp. said. The tropical storm, which was downgraded to a depression on Monday, was the worst to hit Vietnam this year.
