Around 6:50 a.m., Nguyen Thanh Lan, a parent of 2nd and 5th graders in Khuong Dinh ward, received an urgent notice from the homeroom teacher in the class group chat. Nguyen Trai Primary School dismissed students for the day to ensure their safety.
Lan said the heavy rain overnight caused flooding up to her calves in the alley in front of her house. With no one to watch her children, she also decided to stay home.
Waking up at past 6 a.m. to the continuing downpour, Pham Thi Anh in Ha Dong ward was unsure how to get her child to school and still make it to work on time. Online, she saw many people sharing images of severely flooded streets in Ha Dong. While the distance from her house to the school wasn't far, traveling in such heavy rain was dangerous. She was relieved when she received a message from the school announcing its closure, allowing her to keep her child home.
"The school made a very sensible decision," Anh said.
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The area around Nguyen Sieu Primary School in Ha Dong ward was heavily flooded on the morning of 26/8. Photo courtesy of the school. |
The area around Nguyen Sieu Primary School in Ha Dong ward was heavily flooded on the morning of 26/8. Photo courtesy of the school.
Heavy rain from Typhoon Kajiki caused nearly 40 flooded areas in Hanoi on the morning of 26/8, paralyzing many streets and causing major traffic jams.
Currently, schools are not yet in their official academic year, only running summer clubs and review sessions for students. Huynh Thi Huong, principal of Ly Thai To Primary School in Yen Hoa ward, said an urgent meeting was called after seeing the heavy rain and receiving continuous photos of flooded streets from parents. Before making an official announcement, the school asked teachers to inform parents via class group chats so they could make arrangements.
She added that many students live far from the school, some even as far as Tay Ho district. By a little after 6 a.m., a few school buses had already departed to pick up students.
"I immediately told the buses to turn back. Fortunately, parents were able to pick up their children in time," she shared.
Bui Thi Chuyen, principal of La Khe Primary School in Ha Dong ward, also sent out an early morning notice to advise parents to keep their children at home. However, many families couldn't find childcare and still wanted to bring their children to school. Therefore, La Khe Primary School remained open with teachers working as usual.
Out of over 200 students participating in summer clubs like dance, singing, and drawing, about 20 came to school.
At the secondary school level, Linh Dam Secondary School dismissed students for safety reasons. Make-up classes are scheduled for 28/8 or 29/8. Meanwhile, Nguyen Sieu Secondary and High School maintained normal operations, offering a flexible combination of in-person and online learning to prevent disruption to students' studies.
"For the safety of our students, those who had already arrived at school will continue their studies there until further notice, depending on weather conditions. Students who haven't arrived will study online from home," the school announced.
Many universities also shifted to online classes and enrollment procedures. The University of Transport and Communications moved classes online on 26/8 due to severe flooding in many areas of Hanoi, making it difficult for students to commute.
Several universities, including the Banking Academy, University of Commerce, Hanoi Law University, Electric Power University, University of Transport Technology, University of Civil Engineering, Hanoi University of Industrial Fine Arts, and Dong A University of Technology, issued similar announcements.
Vietnam National University of Agriculture had scheduled in-person enrollment for new students from 24/8 to 30/8. Due to Typhoon Kajiki, the university announced yesterday that students should switch to online enrollment.
Typhoon Kajiki formed in the East Sea on 23/8, strengthening to a Category 14 storm as it moved towards the coast. On the afternoon of 25/8, the typhoon made landfall in Thanh Hoa and Nghe An provinces with winds of Category 11-12, gusting to Category 14, causing widespread heavy rain in north-central Vietnam and the northern delta.
In Hanoi, continuous rain from the night of 25/8 to the morning of 26/8 resulted in rainfall exceeding 150-200 mm in many areas; Thuong Tin district recorded over 160 mm in just eight hours. Consequently, numerous streets in the inner city, such as Nguyen Trai, Truong Chinh, Minh Khai, and Nguyen Xien, were deeply flooded, leaving hundreds of cars and motorbikes stalled in the water.
On the morning of 26/8, the typhoon weakened into a tropical depression over Laos, but its circulation continued to bring heavy rain to northern Vietnam, with Hanoi among the most severely affected areas.
Binh Minh - Duong Tam - Thanh Hang
