Natural hazards include rare earthquakes and occasional typhoons (May to January) with extensive flooding, especially in the Mekong River delta Almost every year Vietnam is devastated by storms, floods and typhoons that kill hundreds people and cause millions of dollars of damage. The problem created by disasters have been exacerbated by logging, erosion and overdevelopment. The Vietnamese army is often put to work doing repair work, fixing dykes, laying sandbags and providing relief and emergency supplies.

 An average of 430 people were killed each year by natural disasters between 2007-2011 in Vietnam, with property losses estimated at 1 percent of gross domestic product, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung told a conference on food security and climate change in Hanoi.

 In 2008, natural disasters killed 550 people in Vietnam and caused damage amounting to more than700milliondollars.In2004,naturaldisasterskilled232peopleandleft38missing,injured187others,destroyed4,200housesand3,000hectaresofrice,andkilledover2,000cattleand170,000poultryinVietnam,causingapropertylossofover700milliondollars.In2004,naturaldisasterskilled232peopleandleft38missing,injured187others,destroyed4,200housesand3,000hectaresofrice,andkilledover2,000cattleand170,000poultryinVietnam,causingapropertylossofover57 million dollars. [Source: Xinhua, October 12, 2005]

 Vietnam's long 3,200-kilometers coastline is battered every year by up to 10 storms, killing hundreds, even thousands of people. Some meteorologist predict that global warming will bring more rain to the region more rain, stronger typhoons and higher sea levels and make the flooding problem worse.