Hanoi (VNA) – Diversifying communications methods to enhance public awareness of natural disaster prevention and control, and ensuring accurate and timely forecast are among solutions to minimise damage caused by natural disasters, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang said while chairing a national conference on natural disaster prevention and control, search and rescue in 2024 held in Hanoi on May 10.

Deputy PM Quang, who is Chairman of the National Steering Committee on Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, noted that despite many kinds of natural disasters in 2023 and the first months of 2024, damage caused by the disasters has been reduced, showing the effective efforts of ministries, sectors and localities, especially stronger performance in forecasting, and the timely adjustments of regulations related to natural disaster prevention and control.

However, the Deputy PM pointed to a number of outstanding problems in the work, including inadequate preparations for the stormy season, outdated relevant legal regulations, and limited resilience against natural disasters.

He requested that ministries, sectors and localities continue reviewing and completing the organisation of their steering committees for national disaster prevention and control and civil defence at all levels, while perfecting legal regulations in the work and well preparations before the stormy season.

The Deputy PM also asked for support and information sharing from international organisations, calling for their assistance in equipment and infrastructure through projects in the fields of forecasting and natural disaster prevention and mitigation.

According to the National Steering Committee on Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, last year, the country suffered 1,964 natural disasters of all kinds, especially torrential rain, landslides, flashflood and flooding.

Since the beginning of this year, a number of serious natural disasters have occurred across the country, including severe cold, heatwave, saltwater intrusion, erosion, hail, and earthquakes.

The National Centre for Hydrometeorological Forecasting warned that between July and September this year, the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phenomenon is likely to change to La Nina state. The average temperature in the first four months of 2024 across the country was 0.5-1.5 degrees Celsius higher than the average in many years, it noted.

Deputy General Director of the centre Hoang Duc Cuong said that heat and severe heat are likely to appear more often than average in many years between July and August. In the central region, there is a possibility of prolonged drought from now until August, he said.

The centre earlier forecast that about 11-13 typhoons and tropical low pressures will hit the East Sea, especially from September to November, 5-7 of which are likely to affect the mainland. Dangerous weather phenomena such as thunderstorms, tornadoes, lightning, hail and strong winds will continue to occur across the country from now until the end of 2024, it added.

Cuong said the centre will keep a close watch on developments of natural disasters and water resources in river basins to give early and long-term forecast and alerts.

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Minh Hoan, who is deputy head of the National Steering Committee on Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, said that natural risk prevention and control will continue to be a major task in the coming time.

He said that the committee will continue to focus on the review and inspection of the implementation of strategies and projects on natural disaster prevention and control, civil defense; river and coastal erosion prevention and settlement; and community-based disaster risk management. Meanwhile, natural disaster prevention and control issues will be integrated into socio-economic planning and plans as well as investment projects of ministries, sectors and localities, especially those on infrastructure and residential area development, the official added./.