Floods kill seven in Vietnam

At least seven people have been killed and two are reported missing in heavy floods in central Vietnam, officials said on Monday.

The provinces of Quang Ngai, Khanh Hoa and Binh Dinh reported two fatalities each, while one lost his life in Quang Nam province.

According to Central Steering Committee for Flood and Storm Prevention, the floods also damaged over 46,500 houses, submerged many hectares of subsidiary crops, irrigation works and aquaculture ponds in the region.

Natural disasters including typhoons and hailstorms killed 339 people, left 274 missing and injured 2,065 in Vietnam in 2006. The estimated losses totalled 18.6 trillion Vietnamese dong (nearly $1.2 billion) in that year.