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Torrential rains following Typhoon Matmo caused widespread flooding in northern Vietnam, killing at least three people and damaging thousands of homes.
The storm, despite not hitting Vietnam directly, brought heavy rain on Tuesday, causing rivers to swell, roads to flood, homes to sink and several landslides in the region, which was already reeling from four other typhoons and a tropical storm since September.
More than 4,800 homes were damaged as of Tuesday, according to Vietnamese state media.
Officials said three people died due to landslides in Cao Bang and Thanh Hoa provinces, and four others were missing after being swept away by floods in Thai Nguyen and Thanh Hoa.
Thai Nguyen, just north of the capital, was badly hit. hanoiThe swollen Cow River flooded several communities, with residents saying the water came so fast they were unable to move furniture. Some neighborhoods were isolated and authorities deployed rescue boats to provide relief.
The heavy rain stopped on Wednesday but an alert remains in place for low-lying areas where flooding is expected till the weekend. Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh approved a 140 billion VND ($5.3 million) emergency aid package to help flood-hit northern provinces, according to state media.
Each year, Vietnam experiences 10-13 tropical cyclones, but the frequency of intense, back-to-back typhoons is increasing, suggesting a change driven by climate change, says Benjamin Horton, dean of the School of Energy and Environment at the City University of Hong Kong.
Since August, Vietnam has been battling typhoons such as Kajiki, Ragasa and Bualoi.
According to experts, global warming is making tropical storms stronger and wetter, as warmer oceans provide more fuel to storms, causing more intense winds, heavier rainfall and changing rainfall patterns. east asia,