Thousands evacuated in Vietnam ahead of typhoon

HANOI, Vietnam -- Vietnam began evacuating more than 180,000 people Monday from coastal areas in the path of Typhoon Nari, which killed 13 people and caused widespread damage in the Philippines over the weekend.

The storm is expected to hit the central Vietnamese coast early today with sustained winds of up to 83 mph, causing possible flooding and damage to property.

Disaster official Le Dinh Tuong said 10 hotels popular with foreign tourists close to the town of Hoi An had been ordered to shift their guests to hotels inland.

Officials said they planned to evacuate 180,000 residents from six central provinces to schools and public buildings before nightfall Monday.

Vietnam and other parts of Asia are regularly hit by storms at this time of the year.

The most powerful Asian storm this year was Typhoon Usagi, which caused at least 33 deaths in the Philippines and China in September.