Severe cold spell to end early this week in North

The National Centre for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting has warned that the severe cold weather will continue hitting the northern mountainous provinces with the lowest temperatures of 4-7 degrees Celsius. The mercury will drop to 3 degrees Celsius in some high mountainous areas.

In the meantime, the lowest temperatures in other areas of the northern region and the two north-central provinces will be 8-11 degrees Celsius.

Due to the severe cold spell, frost will appear in midland and northern mountainous areas. Heavy rain is also forecast to hit central localities from Ha Tinh to Khanh Hoa. Especially those from Da Nang to Binh Thuan are forecast to experience hefty rain and thunderstorms at the weekend.

The heavy rain might cause flash floods on small rivers and streams and landslides on steep slopes. Low temperatures can affect crops and livestock. People are told not to use traditional coal stoves for heating in closed rooms to avoid incidents causing fatalities, as happened in some localities in recent years.