Quang Ninh eager to put Typhoon Yagi in rearview mirror to recover tourism

The tourism sector of Quang Ninh province, hard hit by Super Typhoon Yagi on September 7, is taking urgent action to overcome severe consequences of the storm and get its tourism back on track. The super typhoon is said to be the strongest to hit Vietnam in dozens of years.

Nguyen Van Tuan, owner of A105-Bai Chay Restaurant, shared that Yagi caused heavy damage, sweeping away all achievements built up by people working in the tourism sector over the past three months of summer.

To build a business operating in the tourist centre, his family spent a lot of money, but just one storm wiped out all their efforts and assets. Not only that, many restaurants next to his are in the same situation. To restore the busy site to its previous state is not only difficult but will take years not months, Tuan said.

Vu Thi Tuyet, who owns a row of four kiosks, said that those in the tourism industry were starting to recover after suffering significant losses due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, but this super typhoon struck, exacerbating their difficulties. Tuyet said she is unsure when they will be able to recover fully and hopes for support from relevant agencies to help restore tourism activities.

Many accommodation facilities have suffered partial or total damage, as strong winds tore off roofs, collapsed walls, and shattered windows and doors.

They are also facing challenges in repairing infrastructure due to the high volume of repair requests.

For the tourist boats on Ha Long Bay – UNESCO-recognised world natural heritage site, preliminary estimates indicate that over 20 boats have sunk. It will take time before the boats can resume carrying visitors on sight-seeing cruise on the bay.

According to initial statistics, in Quang Ninh, Yagi blew the roofs off a total of 2,083 houses, downed 254 electricity poles, and partially took down or uprooted 70% of trees in urban areas in Ha Long, Cam Pha, Quang Yen and Van Don.