Vietnam to Build 30 More Earthquake Observation Stations

The Vietnamese government plans to build additional 30 earthquake observation stations with total investment of VND70-VND80 billion, raising total stations nationwide to 54, the Dai Doan Ket newspaper reported July 1. Vietnam needs to prepare measures to respond to earthquake and tsunami that is likely to hit the country in the future, the Institute of Global Physics said at an online national dialogue in Hanoi June 29. Addressing the event, deputy director of the Institute's Tsunami Warning and Earthquake Information Centre Nguyen Hong Phuong noted that no tsunami observation system has been set up in the country so far. The institute has already built 25 scenarios for tsunami warnings on the East Sea that is named among tsunami-prone regions, in preparations to best cope with the natural disaster, Phuong said. Vietnam has reportedly been hit by 1,650 earthquakes since 1914, of which 95% happened in the northern province of Dien Bien.