Hanoi: Emergency workers were racing to evacuate thousands of people from severe floods Tuesday after Typhoon Yagi swept through northern Vietnam, killing 63 people and leaving 40 others missing.

About 752 people have also been injured in flooding and landslides, officials at the ministry of agriculture said Tuesday.

Yagi, according to meteorologists the most powerful typhoon to hit northern Vietnam in 30 years, downed bridges, tore roofs off buildings and damaged factories after making landfall on Saturday carrying winds in excess of 149 kilometres (92 miles) per hour.

The north of the country is now battling serious flooding, with several communities partially underwater.

One-storey homes in parts of Thai Nguyen and Yen Bai cities were almost completely submerged in the early hours of Tuesday, with residents waiting on the roofs for help.

In Hanoi, communities along the Red River were also partially under water, with people forced to evacuate.

Phan Thi Tuyet, 50, who lives close to the river, said she had never experienced such high water.

"I have lost everything, all gone. I had to come to higher ground to save our lives. We can not bring with us any of the furniture. Everything is under water now."

  - AFP