Typhoon Yagi hits Vietnam: Truck falls into river as Phong Chau bridge collapses

As over 59,000 people in the Yen Bai province have been forced to flee from their homes following massive floods in the wake of Typhoon Yagi, a video clip from northern Vietnam is now going viral.
The viral video shows Vietnam’s busiest bridge, the Phong Chau Bridge, collapsing into the Hong (Red) River as floodwater surged due to the typhoon. The disaster unfolded dramatically as a lorry, failing to halt in time, plummeted into the turbulent waters of Red River when the bridge decking collapsed.
The harrowing scene was captured on a dashcam of a car which was close behind a truck that plunged into the river.
According to an X user, at least 13 people fell into the river after part of Phong Chau Bridge in Phu Thọ was swept away by floodwaters. The user also claimed that about 10 vehicles and two motorbikes fell in. This was later confirmed by Vietnam’s Deputy Prime Minister Ho Duc Phoc.
Talking to BBC, a survivour of the collapse, Nguyen Minh Hai, said he feels like he just escaped death. Hai was riding his motorcycle across the bridge when it collapsed. “I was so scared when I fell down. I felt like I’d just escaped death. I can’t swim and I thought I would have died,” he told BBC from his hospital bed.
The collapse happened on Monday after the typhoon made landfall on Saturday. Since Typhoon Yagi hit, over 82 lives have been claimed, marking it as one of the most lethal storms Vietnam has seen in thirty years.
With ongoing rescue efforts, authorities have indicated that 13 individuals remain unaccounted for, and search operations are in progress to find them.
Floodwaters in Hanoi have reached levels not seen since 2008, state media reported, citing a senior local official, and forecasters have warned more is expected in the city’s historic centre.