HANOI, Reuters — Floods triggered by torrential rains have killed 16 people in central coastal Vietnam and damaged hundreds of thousands of homes, official media reported on Wednesday.

THE GOVERNMENT said in a published telegram sent to local authorities in central Vietnam that flooding in the former imperial capital of Hue was the worst in 40 years.
 
Vietnam’s central coastal provinces lie well north of the country’s key coffee region and main rice fields, which have both nevertheless been hit by lingering wet season showers. Rivers from Quang Binh to Quang Nam provinces in central Vietnam had burst their banks in recent days, and Hue was virtually cut off, various newspapers said.
 
Officials from Vietnam’s inter-provincial telecommunications center in Hanoi said back-up phone lines were in place for important calls to Hue but that the main network was down. Reuters was unable to contact Hue officials, but residents in other parts of the region said rains were still falling.