Briefs – Vietnam | Floods kill 13 people

Floods from torrential rains have killed 13 people in central Vietnam, with more rain forecast for the region. Local disaster officials said yesterday that floods since late November have killed six people in Binh Dinh province and three in Quang Nam province. The floods have largely receded, they said. The government said in a report that another four died in Quang Ngai. The floods damaged the region’s infrastructure, agriculture and livestock, it said. The report says a cold spell from the north is expected to bring heavy rains to the region. Central Vietnam is one of the country’s poorest areas, and has suffered two bouts of floods since October, killing nearly 50 people. Vietnam is prone to floods and storms that kill hundreds of people each year.

India | Tamil Nadu leader in critical condition

The popular leader of India’s southern Tamil Nadu state was in critical condition after undergoing surgery yesterday morning, hours after suffering a heart attack, the hospital said. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayaram Jayalalitha was being monitored by “a team of experts, including cardiologists, pulmonologist and critical care specialists,” according to a statement from Dr. Subbaiah Viswanathan at Apollo Hospital in the state capital of Chennai. Thousands of Jayalalitha’s supporters, wailing and crying, gathered outside the hospital to pray for her recovery. Police were deployed across the state to ensure security, out of fear that her death could trigger widespread violence and riots. The U.S. Consulate in Chennai put out an advisory urging Americans to be careful in the city and avoid large crowds. Affectionately called “Amma,” or “Mother,” by her supporters, Jayalalitha joined politics in the early 1980s after a successful film career. She has had three stints as chief minister of Tamil Nadu.

Pakistan | Police report hotel fire in Karachi

A massive fire swept through a four-star hotel in the southern port city of Karachi yesterday, killing at least 11 people, officials said. More than 50 people suffered injuries in the early morning blaze, which started in the hotel kitchen, police officer Tauqeer Naeem said. The exact cause of the fire was not yet known, he said, adding that four of the people who died were women. Dr. Semi Jamali at Karachi’s Jinnah’s Hospital said some foreigners were among those being treated for burns. Suffocation caused more deaths, she said. TV footage of the incident showed guests at the hotel using bedsheets to climb down from windows. Meanwhile, a man standing at a balcony kept waving for help but the hotel did not have any means of reaching him, a survivor, Hamid Ali, recalled. He said the guests were sleeping when the fire broke out.