As Vietnam’s flood risks evolve, so must its preparedness

Vietnam has endured an extraordinary sequence of storms and severe flooding over the past two years, exposing how climate pressures and operational limitations often intersect to heighten disaster impacts. 

According to Dr Scott McDonald, lecturer of Logistics and Supply Chain Management, RMIT University Vietnam, these overlapping vulnerabilities highlight the need for stronger foresight in dam operations, better early-warning systems, and a nationwide shift toward proactive flood-risk reduction as extreme weather becomes more frequent. 

A period of significant meteorological volatility

Vietnam is experiencing increasingly severe and frequent flooding across multiple regions. With tropical storms becoming more frequent in Southeast Asia, a crisis is approaching that has never been seen before. 

Typhoon Yagi, a 2024 typhoon that resulted in more than 318 deaths and USD3.3 billion in damages, was one of the deadliest disasters in Vietnam in history. Yet Yagi was just the start of a catastrophic year that continued into 2025 and reveals critical challenges in the nation's disaster management system. The issue goes far beyond the force of nature.  

When record rainfall fell across central Vietnam in late October 2025, Hoi An tourists were evacuated by boat after releases from hydroelectric dams caused the Hoai River to rise nearly 2 meters. This pattern of dam releases is a recurrent nightmare for communities downstream, turning what could be manageable flooding into catastrophic flooding.

In Ha Tinh in 2016, people accused dam operators of not informing the surrounding communities before massive water releases in neighbouring districts resulted in a rise of 1–2 meters within 30 minutes. These incidents have raised long-standing concerns about how hydropower operations and downstream safety can be better balanced during extreme weather events.

Beyond operational challenges, climate dynamics are amplifying risks in ways that are increasingly difficult to predict. Researchers attribute storms like Yagi not just to climate change but also to what amount of heat ocean waters generate to power storms, resulting in higher wind speeds and heavier rain. Vietnam has one of the highest rates of flooding in the world and nearly half of its people reside in high-risk areas. Tropical cyclones in 2025 have been especially brutal.

This year alone, Vietnam had 12 typhoons or tropical storms, and such storms – Bualoi and Matmo, in late September and October, which resulted in over 80 deaths and missing people. This month's storms, such as Kalmaegi, continue to cause severe damage. 

The steps needed for a more resilient future

Vietnam needs to reorient the approach to floods in a fundamental way. The solution demands a paradigm shift from reactive crisis response to proactive risk reduction.

Over the past decade, Vietnam has made notable progress in forecasting capacity and community preparedness. However, the scale and frequency of recent flooding indicate that further systemic improvements will be increasingly important. This requires a coordinated set of actions across technology, governance, ecology and infrastructure.

The first is to overhaul dam operation protocols. Rather than emergency releases in crises, authorities should employ pre-emptive water management strategies that slowly release reservoir water before predicted approaching storms.  

Technology will also play an increasingly central role in strengthening preparedness. Artificial intelligence-based enhanced early warning systems could incorporate real-time rainfall data, reservoir levels and typhoon trajectories to deliver 48–72 hour advance warnings. These systems must be spread to all vulnerable communities with multiple means of reporting, from mobile phones to community loudspeakers to local response teams.

However, technology alone is not enough to build long-term resilience. Brad Jessup, environmental expert at the University of Melbourne, cautions that the emphasis is on disaster infrastructure, but these solutions also must not generate natural disaster risk. Vietnam has to invest in the upstream restoration of forest and wetland, because they absorb and slow down water naturally. This is an alternative to purely engineering-based approaches that is both sustainable and economical.

Complementary to these ecological measures, Vietnam must continue to strengthen its physical infrastructure. The essential infrastructure improvements are retention basins for increased rainfall, strengthening dike systems for more severe rainfall and establishing flood diversion channels. Just as critical is stronger land-use zoning that outlaws residential development in high-risk flood areas and shifts vulnerable communities to safer ground.

A national imperative

Ultimately, resilience depends not only on individual measures, but on a unified national strategy. Vietnam’s flood crisis calls for political will, inter-agency coordination, and continued investment. The country should implement a National Flood Risk Management Authority with decision-making authority, to insist on flood control over power generation in extreme weather and seek international climate adaptation financial support.

The question is not whether Vietnam is capable of supporting these changes, but if it can afford not to make them. Every decision delayed costs lives. Unannounced emergency releases can place downstream families at serious risk during extreme events. Each severely affected community highlights areas where planning and preparedness can be further strengthened.

The way forward is clear: overhaul dam operations, put money into nature-based solutions, restore infrastructure and prioritise public safety alongside hydropower operations. The people of Vietnam should have nothing less than a national strategy that addresses the level of climate crisis that they find themselves in. Strengthening Vietnam’s flood resilience is essential as climate risks continue to intensify.

Story: Dr Scott McDonald, lecturer of Logistics and Supply Chain Management, RMIT University Vietnam