typhoonfury.com

typhoonfury.com

Typhoon Xangsane just prior to making landfall over the Philippines. Image courtesy of NASA

The video compilation from my trip documenting the landfall of typhoon Xangsane in Hoi An, Vietnam

I made this short film a few months after my trip to Vietnam

I had been tracking tropical storm Xangsane (Lao word for elephant) since it had formed just to the east of the Philippines. Storms which form in this area often form into real whoppers and are very likely to make landfall somewhere over mainland Asia so I was watching it closely.

On Wednesday I saw that the system had bombed prior to making landfall on the Philippines, the official agency the Japan Meteorological Agency [JMA] had it up to 90 kts, 167 kmh-1, (Ten minute average) and the Joint Typhoon Warning Centre [JTWC] up to 115 kts, 213 kmh-1 (One minute average). Obviously it was far too late to get to the Philippines and it looked like this one would track south of Hainan Island (which would be very easy for me to get to from Shanghai) and make landfall in Vietnam late Saturday night or early Sunday morning.

Warning #9 from JTWC shows Xangsane making landfall over the Philippines with sustained winds of 125 knots. Image courtesy of JTWC.

I had not even considered Vietnam as a place to intercept, let alone being able to get there in time so I assumed Xangsane would be yet another typhoon which I could only track from a distance on the internet. But then I got thinking, if it is possible to get a Vietnamese visa in 24 hours then I could make it there in time, assuming the typhoon stayed on track for the three days it would take me to get into position.

Before planning anything else I phoned an agent in Bangkok who informed me it would be possible to get an express visa, as long as I was at their office by 3pm on Thursday. This phone call was made at 5pm on Wednesday so I had a lot of preparation to do. I drew up a list of the hurdles I had to clear to get to Vietnam by midday Saturday 30th September, which would be my cut off point. They were as follows:

• Check if there’s a flight from Shanghai which arrives in Bangkok before 1.30pm on Thursday 28th September.
• Actually get a seat on the flight since I’ve only got a standby ticket.
• Get through the new international airport in Bangkok on it first full day of operations by 2pm.
• Hope the agent on the phone was correct in regards to express visa.
• Book tickets to Hue in central Vietnam so I arrive by midday Saturday 30th at the latest.
• Pray my scheduled flights don’t get cancelled or badly delayed.
• Assume the storm’s forecast track would not shift away from central Vietnam in this two and a half day time frame.

If any of these factors turned against me or even if there was a delay of a couple of hours at a crucial point it would be game over.

Thursday 28th September

After a quick phone call my fears were set aside when she informed me my passport would be ready by 5pm Friday. Booking the tickets to central Vietnam was a minor headache but after half an hour and spending a small fortune, I was due to arrive in the ancient city of Hue at 1350 on Saturday 30th, approximately 16 hours before landfall. Five hurdles cleared so far!

It was time to check updates and grab a cold beer. Checked into hotel and saw latest updates from JTWC. Xangsane had weakened after crossing the Philippines but was due to intensify back up to 115 kts, 213 kmh-1, and make a direct hit on Da Nang. Everything was going to plan so far.

Friday 29th September

The day was spent buying supplies such as batteries and food and checking updates. JTWC were forecasting Xangsane to get up to 120 kts, 222 kmh-1, before making landfall to the south of Da Nang. I had read in the media there were rumours that Da Nang city could be evacuated which would make travelling to the target zone very difficult since I would have to hire a car and drive south from Hue through Da Nang and probably have to pay bribes to pass checkpoints on the way. Visa collected fine and evening update still showed Xangsane barrelling into the area south of Da Nang as a major typhoon. Everything now hinged on there being no problems with my flights on Saturday.

Saturday 30th September

I hired a van and did a quick tour of the area. The local high school was full of evacuees who had been moved from the coast. The down town area was bustling with people and the cafes and shops were still open seemingly oblivious as to what was coming.

The evening update showed Xangsane had jogged north slightly and JTWC expected it to make landfall between Hue and Da Nang, more than 50 km north of my location but it was too late to move now. Time to get some sleep and set my alarm for 3.00am.

Evacuees crowd a local school in Hoi An, Vietnam ahead of typhoon Xangsane

Sunday 1st October

3.00am
Woke up to find power was still on and managed to sneak onto the internet for what was to be the last time before landfall to check the updates. Luckily I was in SMS contact with Peter Kirk and my Dad in the UK, Simone Lussardi in Hong Kong and Geoff Mackley in New Zealand so further updates could be relayed to me once the power failed. Things were looking slightly better landfall wise with JTWC going for almost direct hit on Da Nang with winds of 90 kts, 167 kmh-1, gusting to 110 kts, 204 kmh-1. That would put me in the southern eyewall, which would still be one hell of a show. Conditions at 3am - moderate rain with gusting wind up to about 30 mih-1, 48 kmh-1.

5.30am
Weather conditions had started to deteriorate somewhat in the previous two hours. Power had been knocked out and heavy rain was now falling in gusty winds up to about 40 mih-1, 64 kmh-1. It was still dark so there were no filming or photo opportunities. The JMA update had Xangsane offshore with winds of 80 kts, 148 kmh-1.

7.00am
Conditions were still very benign (compared to what was going to come later). There was continued heavy rain and squally winds but nothing too bad. Landfall was due in about one and a half hours and I was starting to get concerned that there might have been a big jog north and I might miss out on the best action. It was now light enough to start filming.

8.00am
About this time we started to get effected by proper tropical cyclone weather. Sheets of rain were being blown horizontally by the wind which was gusting up to 70+ mih-1, 113 kmh-1. From information I had received by mobile phone, landfall was due to take place within the next hour or so.

8.20am
It was evident that the eyewall was approaching. Huge quantities of rain were falling and the small forest to the north of my location was taking a serious battering (Fig. 2). Roofs were getting damaged and tiles starting to fall off our building. Sliding window frames broke loose and water started streaming into the building. The corridors of hotel starting to flood as rain was driven though any gap it could find. Wind started to switch from north easterly to westerly direction.

The scene outside my hotel as the eyewall nears

The howling winds of typhoon Xangsane pummel my location in Hoi An, Vietnam

8.30am
It was around this time that the strongest winds hit, estimated category two one minute average winds with gusts in excess of 110 mih-1, 177 kmh-1. Visibility was severely reduced as the air was filled with the most torrential rain imaginable. Judging by satellite pictures of the typhoon at landfall I must have been less than 15 km from the southern most portion of the eye. The most severe conditions lasted up to an hour and by 9.30am the winds were still very strong but starting to ease. The storm had made landfall and was starting to weaken rapidly.

2006 NRL Monterey Marine Meteorology Division, 2005 Google Earth, with 0000 GMT and 0300 GMT RSMC Tokyo analysis positions marked on.

Visibilty is reduced to near zero in the mayhem of the eyewall

2.00pm
The winds had calmed down sufficiently for me to venture outside and assess the damage. Walked about 5 km to the beach from the hotel through down town Hoi An. Damage seemed to be reasonably light away from the coast. Many trees had been blown over and superficial damage to buildings.

Locals wade through floods to return to their homes and businesses on the coast

Storm surge damage in Hoi An in the immediate aftermath of typhoon Xangsane's landfall

I had to wade through deep flood waters to document the immediate aftermath of typhoon Xangsane

I was amazed by the friendliness of the people and how they still maintained such a positive outlook even though their houses and businesses had just been trashed.

Capable of slicing someone in half, flying corrugated iron is a major hazard when filming typhoons

Evidence of considerable storm surge on the highway to Danang

Wednesday 3rd October

Travel day. Flew back to Thailand with a brief stopover in Saigon. Power was still out in Hoi An when I left but most of my kit had dried out ok. Once in Bangkok I managed to retrieve footage from a DVD disc which had been damaged, have a hot shower and enjoy a cold beer! After six flights in as many days I was exhausted. Mission accomplished.

This trip was the most demanding I have ever undertaken, with everything that could have gone wrong it was a miracle I managed to get to the right place in time. Luck was on my side and this is rarely the case when storm chasing! It was also my first solo typhoon eyewall intercept which made things much more nerve racking. I’d like to thank everyone who gave me their support and updates whilst I was one the move including Peter Kirk, Neil Robbins, John Reynolds, Simone Lussardi, Geoff Mackely, Reed Timmer and the fantastic staff at the Grassland Hotel in Hoi An who helped me out with every need.

A communications tower bent in half by typhoon Xangsane's 110mph+ winds