Tropical storm Mirinae death toll rises to 91 in Vietnam

The death toll from Tropical Storm Mirinae rose to 91 in Vietnam as authorities stepped up rescue and relief operations in the country's central region Wednesday.

In the hardest-hit province of Phu Yen, 26 more deaths were reported as information trickled in from isolated areas, bringing the death toll there to 65, disaster official Dang Thi Lanh said in Hanoi. An additional 13 people were missing.

Elsewhere in the region, the storm and flooding left 26 people dead and five others missing, according to disaster officials and the government's website.

In Phu Yen, soldiers in dozens of speedboats rushed instant noodles, water and clothes to victims in flooded areas who have gone hungry for the past several days, Lanh said. Three military helicopters were also dropping food to victims in isolated areas.

Although flood waters were beginning to recede, many areas remain inundated. Authorities have evacuated nearly 15,000 people from Phu Yen. Some were rescued from rooftops, where they had scrambled to escape the overflowing Ha Thanh River.

In the neighbouring province of Binh Dinh, two military helicopters dropped food and water to villagers still stranded in isolated areas, said Ho Quoc Dung, deputy chairman of the provincial People's Committee.

The storm and flooding also left 52 people injured, destroyed or damaged 14,000 homes and damaged about 5,000 hectares of rice and other crops, according the national committee for flood and storm control.