Authorities in Vietnam prepared Thursday as Typhoon Kalmaegi approached after battering the Philippines.

Vietnam’s aviation authority issued a storm alert, with several airlines canceling or rescheduling flights to and from central and highland cities as the typhoon moved closer to landfall.

Hundreds of travelers waited in Hanoi's airport as flights were cancelled.

In hilly Gia Lai province, authorities evacuated hundreds of thousands of residents.

Authorities have banned vessels from going to sea and suspended construction projects. Army officials were seen directing fishermen away from their boats.

The country’s financial hub, Ho Chi Minh City, faces a heightened risk of severe flooding as high tides would coincide with the expected heavy rainfall from the typhoon, forecasters warned.

Strong waves were also seen crashing onto the shore in Quang Ngai.

Kalmaegi left at least 26 people dead in the Philippines, mostly in flooding set off by the storm, which barreled across the central part of the country on Tuesday.