HANOI: Heavy rain swept central Vietnam on Monday, triggering landslides and floods, killing at least seven, injuring dozens and stranding thousands.
The deluges have wreaked widespread destruction across a region already battered weeks ago by floods from record rainfall and the powerful typhoon Kalmaegi.
Rainfall through Wednesday is expected to reach 30–60 centimeters (12–24 inches) in parts of central Vietnam, with some areas likely to exceed 85 centimeters (33 inches).
Landslide causes bus crash
The hard-hit province of Khanh Hoa, a coastal region with hilly inland terrain, recorded one of its heaviest rainfall in years on Sunday night when earth and rocks collapsed on a bus traveling through the Khanh Le pass in the central highlands, state media reported.
The landslide crushed the front of the bus at around 9.30 p.m. local time, killing six people and trapping many passengers. Rescuers struggled for hours to reach the scene as heavy rain had also caused landslides on both sides of the pass, cutting off access. Rescue teams were only able to reach the bus after midnight, according to state media.
“Rocks and soil fell down with a loud bang. I was thrown on the roof of the bus before falling down,” Nguyen Long Cuong, the 39-year-old bus conductor, told state media VN Express.
The bus was carrying 32 people from Vietnam’s financial capital, Ho Chi Minh City and was traveling from Da Lat in Vietnam’s central highlands to the coastal city of Nha Trang. The injured were taken to a nearby hospital. State media said two of the dead bodies were still trapped under the debris as the treacherous terrain hindered the work.
The winding, 33-kilometer (20-mile) stretch carved into steep mountainsides is scenic and popular with tourists but prone to landslides in the rainy season.
The rains have triggered multiple landslides on major routes in Vietnam’s Central Highlands and traffic on several hilly passes has been suspended, state media said.
Also in Khanh Hoa, waterlogged soil collapsed on 10 workers at the Khanh Son pass on Sunday night, killing one and injuring another, while another remained missing, state media said. The seven others were able to flee to safety.
People stranded as floods hit
Flooding also hit the port city Cam Ranh and the coastal district of Cam Lam Sunday night, submerging more than 100 meters (328 ft) of railway lines under water and debris. Over 800 passengers on four trains were still stranded on Monday evening.
Flood waters inundated the Du Long Industrial Park on Monday, which houses several factories, including German and South Korean companies. Rains submerged factories by 1 meter (3.2 feet) of water and forced the power cuts, forcing thousands of workers to halt operations.
Torrential rain also flooded a national highway in the province of Dak Lak, prompting police to block the road and redirect traffic.
In the city of Hue, floods triggered landslides on Sunday in mountainous areas, blocking a major highway that runs from northern to southern Vietnam and cutting off several villages, isolating thousands, while in Quang Ngai province, rainfall of 150 to 235 mm (5.9–9.3 inches) collapsed a bridge over a stream, stranding 1,200 residents in remote hamlets.
On Sunday night, a tornado tore through the southern areas of Danang city and Quang Ngai province, ripping roofs from dozens of houses, uprooting trees and scattering debris.
Vietnam is among the world’s most flood-prone countries, with nearly half its population living in high-risk areas. Scientists warn that a warming climate is intensifying storms and rainfall across Southeast Asia, making floods and landslides increasingly destructive and frequent.
Heavy rain triggers landslides and floods in central Vietnam, killing seven
https://arab.news/nh2bv
Heavy rain triggers landslides and floods in central Vietnam, killing seven
- The deluges have wreaked widespread destruction across a region already battered weeks ago by floods
- Vietnam is among the world’s most flood-prone countries, with nearly half its population living in high-risk areas
Trump is threatening to block a new bridge between Detroit and Canada from opening
- Trump’s threat comes as the relationship between the US and Canada increasingly sours during the US president’s second term
WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump on Monday threatened to block the opening of a new Canadian-built bridge across the Detroit River, demanding that Canada turn over at least half of the ownership of the bridge and agree to other unspecified demands in his latest salvo over cross-border trade issues.
“We will start negotiations, IMMEDIATELY. With all that we have given them, we should own, perhaps, at least one half of this asset,” Trump said in a lengthy social media post, complaining that the United States would get nothing from the bridge and that Canada did not use US steel to built it.
The Gordie Howe International Bridge, named after a Canadian hockey star who played for the Detroit Red Wings for 25 seasons, had been expected to open in early 2026, according to information on the project’s website. The project was negotiated by former Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder — a Republican — and paid for by the Canadian government to help ease congestion over the existing Ambassador Bridge and Detroit-Windsor tunnel. Work has been underway since 2018.
It’s unclear how Trump would seek to block the bridge from being opened, and the White House did not immediately return a request for comment on more details. The Canadian Embassy in Washington also did not immediately return a request for comment.
Trump’s threat comes as the relationship between the US and Canada increasingly sours during the US president’s second term. The United States-Mexico-Canada trade agreement is up for review this year, and Trump has been taking a hard-line position ahead of those talks, including by issuing new tariff threats.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, meanwhile, has spoken out on the world stage against economic coercion by the United States.
Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Michigan, said the Canadian-funded project is a “huge boon” to her state and its economic future. “You’ll be able to move cargo from Montreal to Miami without ever stopping at a street light,” Slotkin told The Associated Press.
“So to shoot yourself in the foot and threaten the Gordie Howe Bridge means that this guy has completely lost the plot on what’s good for us versus just what’s spite against the Canadians,” Slotkin said.
Michigan, a swing state that Trump carried in both 2016 and 2024, has so far largely avoided the brunt of his second-term crackdown, which has targeted blue states with aggressive immigration raids and cuts to federal funding for major infrastructure projects.
Trump and Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer have also maintained an unusually cordial relationship, with the president publicly praising her during an Oval Office appearance last April. The two also shared a hug last year ahead of Trump’s announcement of a new fighter jet mission for an Air National Guard base in Michigan.
While Canada paid for the project, the bridge will be operated under a joint ownership agreement between Michigan and Canada, said Stacey LaRouche, press secretary to Whitmer.
“This is the busiest trade crossing in North America,” LaRouche said, saying the bridge was “good for Michigan workers and it’s good for Michigan’s auto industry” as well as being a good example of bipartisan and international cooperation.
“It’s going to open one way or another, and the governor looks forward to attending the ribbon-cutting,” LaRouche said.
Rep. Shri Thanedar, the Democratic House representative of Detroit, said blocking the bridge would be “crazy” and said Trump’s attacks on Canada weren’t good for business or jobs. “The bridge is going to help Michigan’s economy. There’s so much commerce between Michigan and Canada. They’re one of our biggest partners,” Thanedar said.
Democratic Rep. Debbie Dingell of Ann Arbor brushed aside the president’s threat, saying she’s looking forward to the bridge’s opening later in the spring. “And I’ll be there,” Dingell said.
“That bridge is the biggest crossing in this country on the northern border. It’s jobs. It’s about protecting our economy. It was built with union jobs on both sides,” said Dingell. “It’s going to open. Canada is our ally.”
