HANOI, Vietnam, Oct. 19 (UPI) -- The death toll from ongoing flooding in central Vietnam has reached 31, officials said.
Vietnam News reported Tuesday a bus carrying 37 people had been swept away by flood waters along a highway in Ha Tinh province Monday. Seventeen passengers were rescued but 20 were still missing.
More than 152,000 houses were reported under water in the country's central provinces, the News said.
"The disaster has left thousands of people in the province penniless after their assets were swept away in the flood waters. They have nothing left to eat or drink," said Vo Kim Cu, chairman of the People's Committee in Ha Tinh province.
Officials also said a massive landslide in Thua Thien-Hue province had blocked a section of the Ho Chi Minh Highway in the Pe Ke mountain pass with thousands of tons of rocks and earth.
Bui Minh Tang, director of the National Hydrometeorological Forecast Center, said the region had received up to 39 inches of rain in the previous three days.
"Heavy rains are forecast to continue in these provinces, particularly Nghe An and Thanh Hoa," he said.
Typhoon Megi was forecast to cross into the East Sea Tuesday evening, further complicating the flood situation in Vietnam.
