Overview
Asia’s biggest typhoon of 2024 hit multiple countries in Southeast Asia, leaving dozens dead or missing.
While Typhoon Yagi affected several countries, including China, the Philippines, Laos, Thailand and Myanmar, the most significant impacts were in Vietnam, which is the focus of this profile.
Yagi made landfall on Sept. 7 in Northern Vietnam in the coastal cities of Haiphong and Quang Ninh, about 75 miles east of the country’s capital, Hanoi. At landfall, winds reached 90 mph, making it the strongest storm to hit the country in 30 years. Analysts say it could lead to an increased focus on climate change.
Vietnam’s National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting said there had been 8.2 to 17 inches of rain in the first 24 hours in some areas, with more rainfall and landslides predicted. While the storm has left Vietnam, heavy rains continue to fall.
Hanoi and its suburbs, as well as many other communities along the Red River, flooded. Low-lying areas were evacuated as water exceeded three feet.
(Photo: Flooding from Super Typhoon Yagi in Vietnam. Credit: Thông tin Chính phủ (Government of Vietnam) via Facebook)
While widespread infrastructure damage is making communication difficult, at least 3,300 homes and almost 300,000 acres of crops were damaged in the northern part of the country. However, some areas are inaccessible, so a complete damage assessment is not yet possible.
The government has not yet provided a damage estimate. While the military is engaged in response and recovery efforts, insurance in Vietnam is rare, meaning recovery will be expensive and require many government and philanthropic resources.
Yagi was the 11th named storm, the first violent typhoon and the strongest storm of the 2024 Pacific typhoon season.
Latest Updates
What we’re watching: Weekly disaster update, September 16
Impact in other countries
China
- Yagi made two landfalls in China on Sept. 6. The first landfall was on Hainan Island in southern China as a Category 4 storm, the second strongest this year after Hurricane Beryl. The last big typhoon to hit the island was Rammasun in 2014.
- There were four deaths and 95 injuries in China, all on the island.
- Hainan Province is nicknamed “the Hawaii of China” because of its tropical beauty, sandy beaches, and cultural and entertainment attractions. There was significant damage on the island, which will impact tourism and livelihoods.
- At least one million people were evacuated in China, including 400,000 from the island.
- The second landfall was on Sept. 7 in the southwestern end of Guangdong province.
- More than 1.2 million people were affected in Hainan, Guangdong and Guangxi provinces.
Laos
- France 24 reported that the World Food Programme had expressed concerns “for the safety of communities in northern Laos” and that national media had reported “extensive damage to houses, roads, markets, schools and farmland.”
- One person died, and one is missing.
- In northern Luang Namtha province, 300 people were evacuated from 17 villages.
Myanmar
- A government official from the ministry of social welfare said that casualties were expected, but no information was available on numbers as of Sept. 11.
- River levels near the capital Naypyidaw were very high.
The Philippines
- Yagi was known as Severe Tropical Storm Enteng in the Philippines. It entered the Philippines Area of Responsibility (PAR) in late August, making landfall on the island of Luzon on Sept. 2 and exiting the PAR on Sept. 4.
- Luzon recorded 15.8 inches of rain during the storm, but the area has continued to receive rain from the outer bands.
- Nearly three million people (almost 800,000 families) were affected across 2,821 barangays. Heavy rain led to flooding and landslides, displacing almost 50,000 people from their homes.
- At least 20 people died, with several more missing.
Thailand
- There are 9,000 flood-affected families in Thailand.
- At least four people died in Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai.
Key impact statistics
- As of Sept. 11, 179 people have died in Vietnam, with more than 150 missing. Vietnam’s emergency management agency reported almost 800 injuries. Nearly one-third (45) of the casualties were in Lao Cai Province.
- Most of the deaths are due to landslides and flash floods. The biggest landslide of the event consumed the small village of Lang Nu in Lao Cai province (population 158). It left at least 22 dead and 73 people missing. Only 63 people are confirmed to have survived.
- Infrastructure is badly affected especially transportation and communications. A bridge in Phu Tho province collapsed on Sept. 9, killing several people.
- Students have been told to stay out of school for at least the rest of the week.
- Yagi means goat, or the constellation of Capricornus, in Japanese.
Livelihood and supply chain issues
In the wake of Yagi, there have been far-reaching closures and disruptions, especially in the manufacturing and shipping sectors, affecting China, Hong Kong, and Vietnam.
Vietnam’s industrial region, Haiphong, is home to several international factories, including LG Electronics.
Bloomberg noted that in Guangdong, one of the provinces affected in China, known as a manufacturing hub, “climate change [was] a factor in the country’s latest factory activity data, which fell below expectation.” This was attributed in part to their heavy flood season in 2024.
In Hong Kong and Guangdong, the closure of transportation networks means that supply chains will be disrupted, creating a backlog. Some companies fear this will drive up costs and take weeks for everything to return to normal.
As noted, Hainan is a heavy tourist destination, so the damage will reduce tourism until repairs can be made. While it isn’t high tourism season now, the damage was extensive.
Rapid intensification and climate change
As with Hurricane Beryl earlier this year, Yagi went under rapid intensification as it moved between the Philippines and China. It strengthened by 70 mph and had winds of 160 mph on Sept. 5. When it hit China, Yagi was a Super Typhoon but lost intensity before it reached Vietnam and was downgraded to a typhoon.
According to BBC, “scientists have warned that as the world warms, typhoons can bring higher wind speeds and more intense rainfall, although the influence of climate change on individual storms is complicated.”
Warmer ocean temperatures cause tropical cyclones to intensify quickly. Scientists have linked this to the “human-caused climate crisis.”
A study published in July, found that climate change is causing typhoons to stay over land longer, intensify faster and form closer to the coast. Several events in 2024, including flooding in Kenya and Hurricane Beryl, were affected by the heat of their respective oceans.
Red River Valley
The Red River Valley area is one of the most densely populated in Southeast Asia. The river begins in China and flows southeast through Hanoi and out to the Gulf of Tonkin.
Flooding is not unusual, and people have tried to manage and control the river for thousands of years. The extreme speed of increase seen during Yagi is unusual, and the river reached its highest levels in 20 years. At one point on Sept. 10, water was rising by four inches every hour. The rain continued, even as the storm moved on and weakened.
The New York Times said, “There are also increasing concerns over further flooding as Vietnam’s hydropower dams are discharging water from swelling reservoirs along the Red River.”
China and Vietnam are working together on flood control.
CDP has a Global Recovery Fund that provides an opportunity for funders to meet the ongoing and ever-expanding challenges presented by global crises. Select “2024 Super Typhoon Yagi” from the dropdown menu.
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Philanthropic contributions
If you have questions about donating to the CDP Global Recovery Fund, need help with your disaster-giving strategy or want to share how you’re responding to this disaster, please contact development.
(Photo: Coalition troops relocate people and property in affected areas in Long Bien (Hanoi) to safety. Credit: Thông tin Chính phủ (Government of Vietnam) via Facebook)
Recovery updates
If you are a responding NGO, please send updates on how you are working on recovery from this disaster to Tanya Gulliver-Garcia.
We welcome the republication of our content. Please credit the Center for Disaster Philanthropy.
More Ways to Help
- Provide cash assistance: As with most disasters, disaster experts recommend cash support, which enables on-the-ground agencies to direct funds to the greatest area of need, support economic recovery and ensure donation management does not detract from disaster recovery needs. Many people lost everything in the typhoon. Direct cash assistance allows families to purchase items and services locally that address their multiple needs. It gives each family flexibility and choice, ensuring that support is relevant and timely. Cash assistance can also help move families faster toward rebuilding their lives.
- Ask the experts: If you are considering supporting an organization that is positioned to work in an affected area, do some research. CDP and InterAction can provide resources and guidance about organizations working in affected communities. The Council on Foundations provides Country Notes for countries to help foundations understand giving requirements, laws and regulations in various countries.
Educational resources
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