Rescue crews are still combing through rubble in Quảng Ngãi province on Saturday, looking for three individuals who disappeared when Typhoon Kalmaegi made landfall on November 7. The victims have not been identified publicly, and their relatives remain on standby as teams work through the debris.
Kalmaegi hit the central coast with little warning, moving inland while unleashing heavy rain and strong winds across several provinces. The storm’s most severe impacts were recorded in the Central Highlands provinces of Đăk Lăk and Gia Hi, where at least five fatalities have been confirmed. The death toll could rise as officials await full assessments once floodwaters recede and blocked roads are cleared. Both provinces suffered extensive damage to a range of structures.
In addition to poorly built homes, concrete buildings were torn apart, roofs ripped away and ground‑floor levels flooded. In Đăk Lăk, entire families lost all possessions within a few hours, underscoring how far the typhoon’s force traveled inland—far beyond the coastal zones where such storms are typically strongest.
Gia Hi experienced similar devastation: downed power lines, uprooted trees and obstructed roadways hampered movement for residents and emergency responders alike. The storm affected urban and rural areas without distinction, leaving a patchwork of collapsed houses, broken infrastructure and isolated communities. Emergency teams are now focusing on clearing routes for relief convoys.
Food, clean water and medical supplies must reach the affected zones, but progress is slowed by tangled branches, snapped poles and flooded passages that turn each road into a maze. In Quảng Ngãi, the search for the three missing persons has been ongoing since first light.
Rescuers have inspected riverbanks, collapsed structures and other likely sites where the individuals were last seen before the storm struck. Officials stress that the longer the search continues, the slimmer the chances of finding survivors. Although Kalmaegi is weakening as it moves further inland, the damage it inflicted is already permanent.
Recovery operations have begun, encompassing temporary shelters for displaced residents, the distribution of aid and the systematic accounting of the deceased and missing. Authorities note that many people evacuated before the typhoon’s arrival, a factor that likely limited the overall death count.
Nevertheless, some residents were unable to leave—either choosing to protect property or lacking means of evacuation—and those individuals are among the hardest hit. Vietnam’s typhoon season extends throughout much of the year, and Kalmaegi adds to a series of recent storms that have battered the central coast. Each event compresses the window for rebuilding before the next system forms, placing additional strain on already stretched infrastructure and community resources.
For the moment, the priority remains locating the three missing in Quảng Ngãi and confirming the identities of the confirmed fatalities in Đăk Lăk and Gia Hi. Subsequent steps will involve burial arrangements, extensive reconstruction, insurance processing and broader assessments of the storm’s socioeconomic impact.
