Flash flood kills 4, leaves 4 others missing in Vietnam

The flood buries roads in red mud and debris in Lai Chau village

Rescue workers at the site of the flood in Muong Than Commune, Lai Chau Province, northern Vietnam via Vietnam's official Disaster Prevention and Response Information Facebook page

At least four people were killed, and four others were missing after a flash flood swept through a mountainous village in Vietnam’s northern province of Lai Chau, state media reported on Saturday.

The flood in Muong Than village early on Friday, after days of heavy rains in several parts of northern Vietnam, also injured seven people, reported the Vietnam News Agency.

Vietnam is prone to deadly storms and floods during the rainy season that peaks from July through September.

Natural disasters, mostly floods, killed 489 people in the country last year, according to government data.

The Vietnam News Agency report had photos showing red mud and flood water blanketing the village, with rocks and wood logs piling in a corner of a damaged road.

Since Wednesday, landslides and flash floods triggered by heavy rain have also damaged roads, power grids and hundreds of houses, as well as inundating 238 hectares of crops in the region, according to the government’s disaster management agency.

Several parts of northern Vietnam are forecast to receive heavy rain of up to 250mm on Saturday, the agency said, warning of more flash floods and landslides.