Flooding in central Vietnam kills 17 since last week

HANOI, Vietnam — Torrential rains have flooded central Vietnam and killed at least 17 people since last week, as the region braces for more heavy rainfall, state media reported Monday.

According to weather forecasters, water levels will keep rising, swelling rivers and submerging more communities in the region, the state-owned Tuoi Tre newspaper reported.

The situation worsened over the weekend when Tropical Storm Linfa, which weakened to a depression when it hit the country, brought more rain to the region, the newspaper said.

Local authorities have evacuated almost 50,000 people to higher ground, with the floods submerging over 100,000 households.

Rain is forecast to last until Tuesday.