Ho Chi Minh City: On duty 24/7, ready to respond to storm No. 13 and high tides

Proactively responding to the dangerous and unpredictable developments of storm No. 13 (Kalmaegi storm) and the risk of flooding, Ho Chi Minh City has activated emergency response plans, especially focusing on key areas when it is forecasted that this high tide could exceed historical levels, combined with prolonged heavy rain.

Response work in key areas

According to SGGP reporters on November 4 and 5, Ho Chi Minh City authorities have been implementing urgent measures in areas identified as vulnerable and frequently flooded during recent high tides.

The Military Command of Binh Quoi Ward, Ho Chi Minh City urgently transported sandbags to prevent high tides from entering key locations, early morning of November 5.

Accordingly, in the Thanh Da peninsula area, Binh Quoi - where the previous high tide caused flooding from 0.5m to more than 1m deep, since early morning, local military forces have proactively checked and reinforced weak embankments around canals and residential areas at high risk of flooding.

Sandbag embankment prevents high tides from entering people's houses

In An Phu Dong ward and Binh Chanh commune, they have also focused on checking the dyke system and canals at risk of overflow, especially at locations that were eroded or damaged during the high tide at the end of October.

People and water pumping vehicles were mobilized to Tram Lay 1 canal area, hamlet 3, Binh Loi commune to respond to flooding caused by high tides and heavy rain.

In addition, Ho Chi Minh City has prepared to operate 388 floodgates and 17 mobile pumping stations to cope with high tides and heavy rains. At the same time, it requires irrigation management units to absolutely not suddenly release floodwaters from large reservoirs such as Dau Tieng and Tri An, to avoid aggravating the flooding situation in downstream areas.

Reinforcing canal banks to cope with high tides in Dong Thanh commune, Ho Chi Minh City

In Thuan An ward, talking to reporters, Mr. Le Quoc Viet, Commander of the ward's Military Command, said that as of the morning of November 5, the local situation was stable, and people were always proactive in dealing with high tides.

According to Mr. Le Quoc Viet, during the high tide at the end of October, the peak tide reached a high level compared to the historical mark. Local authorities mobilized more than 100 people and neighborhoods to reinforce the Saigon River embankment, the canal sections through Thanh Loc neighborhood, Thanh Quy neighborhood, the embankment sections of the Trang bridge area, and the Ba Lua Port section; coordinated to support people in moving their belongings, reinforcing vulnerable points at risk of landslides, and especially focused on propaganda so that people can proactively respond to high tides.

In recent days, the weather has been complicated in Ho Chi Minh City in general and in Phu An ward in particular. There have been days of heavy rain over a large area, combined with high tides, causing overflow and flooding in some areas in Tan An 1, 2, 4, 5, 9; Phu Thuan, Ben Giang, Phu Thu, Ben Lieu.

A road near the embankment in Tan An 2 neighborhood, Phu An ward was reinforced by local people to prevent mud. Photos before and after reinforcement

At one point, localized flooding affected more than 200 households and nearly 80 hectares of fruit and vegetable gardens. Some areas were flooded up to 0.5 meters, forcing people to raise their belongings to protect their property.

According to the reporter's records, the leaders of the Party Committee, People's Council, and People's Committee directly went to the area to inspect the flooding situation, visit and encourage the affected households. At the same time, they directed the functional forces to coordinate with the people to urgently reinforce the embankment, dredge drainage ditches, install pumps to drain water and prepare spare materials, ready to handle any arising situations to overcome the incident.

Racing with the tide

On November 4 and 5, Mr. Tran Van Chinh, in An My neighborhood, Thuan An ward, Ho Chi Minh City, carried a hoe to build a bank to prevent the rising tide from the Saigon River. He said that he has lived here since 1975 and has witnessed two terrible floods. One was about 10 years ago, when the water flooded the house up to the edge of the wooden plank, at that time the water was more than half a meter high. But the most recent time was at the end of October, the water flooded past the wooden plank.

Military forces of Thuan An ward, Ho Chi Minh City support people in responding to high tides

Mr. Tran Van Chinh, An My quarter, Thuan An ward, carried a hoe to the garden to build a bank to deal with the high tide of Saigon river.

Meanwhile, in Ben Cat ward, an area with many low-lying areas, which are hotspots during the rainy season, the survey team of the ward People's Committee also directly surveyed the current state of the drainage system, ditches, and roads that often experience local flooding during the rainy season. At the same time, it directed relevant agencies and units to have proactive response plans.

On the morning of November 5, in Phu My ward, after the heavy rain last night, some points on National Highway 51, through Quang Phu and Phuoc Lap quarters, appeared to be partially flooded. However, the water receded quickly, causing no traffic jams or damage.

Mr. Huynh Xuan Khang, Vice Chairman of Phu My Ward People's Committee, said that the locality has activated a plan to respond to natural disasters and storm Kalmaegi. The ward has also widely informed people to proactively protect their property, evacuate from deep flooded areas and check for landslide risks on mountain slopes and river banks.

In Vung Tau ward, Mr. Vu Hong Thuan, Chairman of the ward People's Committee, said that the locality maintains 24/24 duty, closely monitoring the developments of storm Kalmaegi. The ward's Civil Defense Command has prepared a plan to respond to storms, tornadoes, and landslides; notified ships to proactively take shelter; coordinated with Ben Da Border Guard Station to count and maintain contact with vehicles at sea. The ward also requested tourist and accommodation establishments to proactively stop island tours, prepare shelters for tourists, and strictly implement the "4 on-site" motto...

Along with vulnerable areas, residential areas with high risk of flooding, in high-rise buildings and apartments - where there are residents' parking garages, building management boards have also proactively taken measures to protect people's property and lives.

Board embankment to prevent flooding in the basement of Sunview apartment building (Cay Keo street, Tam Binh ward)

At Sunview apartment building, on Cay Keo street, Tam Binh ward , Mr. Bui Thanh Phuc, Head of the building management board, said that the unit has also proactively used boards and covers to prevent water from flowing from the ground into the parking basements; proactively preserved and covered the electrical cabinets and operating systems located in the basements.

“The apartment building has also purchased property insurance for residents. In case water floods into the basement, the management board, security forces and residents will work together to move property and vehicles to higher ground to avoid damage,” said Mr. Bui Thanh Phuc.

Urgent direction and synchronized action

Faced with the complicated and unpredictable developments and impacts of storm No. 13 and flooding in some key areas, the People's Committee of Ho Chi Minh City requests departments, branches, units and localities to maintain 24/24 duty according to Decision No. 1860/QD-UBND dated September 29, 2025 of the People's Committee of the City on promulgating the Regulations on on-duty response to incidents, natural disasters and catastrophes in the city to grasp the situation, anticipate the worst possible situations to respond promptly; inform on-duty phone numbers, assign on-duty forces, be ready to support and help people when facing difficulties.

Local military forces urgently reinforce the banks.

At the same time, coastal wards, communes, island communes, Con Dao special zone, City Border Guard Command, City Coastal Information Station, Department of Fisheries and Fisheries Surveillance deploy plans to ensure safety for people and boats operating on rivers, at sea, in seaport waters and coordinate search and rescue work; Green Park Company proactively handles quickly the incident of trees falling due to storms; City Electricity Company urgently fixes electrical problems, ensuring electrical safety during the rainy and stormy season...

According to the Southern Hydrometeorological Station, early this morning, November 5, storm Kalmaegi entered the eastern sea area of ​​the central East Sea, becoming the 13th storm in the East Sea in 2025. At 7:00 a.m., the center of the storm was at about 11.4 degrees North latitude; 118.9 degrees East longitude, about 500km east of Song Tu Tay Island. The strongest wind near the center of the storm was level 13 (134-149 km/h), gusting to level 16. Moving in the West Northwest direction at a speed of about 20km/h.

Warning, from November 6 to November 7, the peak tide in the downstream area of ​​Saigon - Dong Nai river is likely to reach a very high level.

Warning tide level: Peak tide at Phu An Station is expected to reach 1.67m and Thu Dau Mot Station to reach 1.8-1.85m, exceeding alarm level III (1.6m). Peak tide is expected to occur between 4-6am and 5-7pm.

Risk: This sudden high tide, when combined with moderate to heavy rain (due to the tropical convergence zone connected to the Kalmaegi storm circulation), will increase the risk of widespread deep flooding in low-lying areas along rivers and canals in the city.

GROUP OF REPORTERS

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/tphcm-ung-truc-2424-gio-san-sang-ung-pho-bao-so-13-va-trieu-cuong-post821822.html