1. BRIEF INTRODUCTION ON THE CURRENT WARNING SYSTEM IN VIET NAM Do Quynh HOA, VIET NAM Regional Trainning on Severe Weather Forecasting and Warning Services: Workshop on Public Weather Services, Macao, 15-19 April 2013

2. Contents Natural hazards situation in Viet Nam Forecast Models and Warning Products Warning Dissemination System Community Awareness in Viet Nam Recommendations

3. Viet Nam is one of the most disaster prone countries Viet Nam is located in the tropical monsoon area (Weather systems and tropical turbulence; Topographic effects; Interaction between Land and Ocean) Viet Nam suffers much from natural disasters such as tropical cyclones, storm surge, heavy rain, flood, flash flood, drought, etc. The total length of Vietnam coast is 3 444 km. In the coast the dominating hazards are typhoons, storm surge, floods, landslide, drought, salinity, tornadoes and hail.

4. Forecast Models and Warning Products Forecast Models: Meteorological model: NWP Hydrological model: Marine model for hydro and water level; Mike -11 Forecast Products: 1. Short term forecast: Daily weather forecast, 3-5 days Forecasts about storm, tropical depression (concretized from the Central news), cold front and drought Flood forecast Forest fire forecast 2. Long and moderate term forecast: Forecast for 10 days/month/crop (Winter-Spring and Summer-Autumn and take consideration into flood, storm and rain conditions) 3. Topical forecast (when required): Forecast is made to serve construction of traffic, building, irrigation and hydroelectricity

5. DISEMINATION NHMS - Government Office - Ministry of Defence - MARD - Ministry of Transportation - Ministry of Commerce - People’s Committee - Committee for Flood and Storm Control and Rescue - Natural Resources and Environment Departments - Steering Committee for Flood and Storm Control - National Committee for Rescue - Viet Nam Television - Viet Nam Radio - Viet Nam News - People’ Newspaper - Marine Information Center - Television and Radio Province - Daily Newspaper of province Provincial Commit tee for Flood and Storm Control and Rescue Local Commit tee for Flood and Storm Control and Rescue People

6. Dissemination Methods (from central to local) Writen Document Fax Telephone Internet, Web,email Online Discussion Central Agencies Local

7. Dissemination Methods (from local to people) Ti vi Radio Siren (tại địa điểm dân cư) Internet, Web Agencies in Chage of Information Transmission People Community

8. EVACUATION DRILL Implement many respond methods to many kinds of natural disasters to give the suitable scenarios Vật tư

9. Community Awareness in Viet Nam The forecast information has many technical terms which are scientific, complex. It makes difficulties for the community to understand. The forecast report for large regions make the community confused. There is no mechanism of user feedback after extreme natural hazard event => difficulty for improving the country’s early warning system. NHMS collaborated with ADPC, RIMES,… to organize several forums in order to raise the awareness of community on natural disasters and prevention methods.

10. Recommendations to Enhance Capacities 1. For forecaster: - Improve forecast technology, training for forecasters; - Enhance capacity of information transfer from forecast agency to commune; - Improve the content and form of forecast report. Diversify the forecast to respond need of different social groups (fishery, medicine, education…); - Transform scientific information, which is often complex and in the form of maps or percentages, into simple and accessible messages that would allow people at risk to make sensible decisions on how to respond to an impending threat.

11. Recommendations to Enhance Capacities 2. For user: - Raise the awareness of the community by: + Propagandizing through mass media; + Holding training classes based on career groups; + Supplying more audio-visual means and power source to each commune and hamlet. - Raise the community’s awareness on the country’s current forecast technology and forecasters capacity in order to have a better cooperation between NHMS and other relevant agencies and the community. - Build up a mechanism of user feedback for improving the country’s early warning system; - Invest in disaster preparedness at all levels – community, local, provincial and national

12. Recommendations to Enhance Capacities 3. Relevant agencies: - Identify clearly the roles of related agencies - Cooperate more closely - To improve disaster forecast and warning capacities; to build up modern infrastructure. - To specialize disaster response forecast at commune level - Increase Evacuation Drill - Build sustainable strategy: Look for investment resource to maintain activities related to PWS

13. THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION Ms. Hoa, Viet Nam