Coldest Vietnam in four decades

Parts of Vietnam have reached their coldest temperatures since the 1960s with ice and snow on the Hoang Lien Son Mountain as well as Sa Pa town in the northern Lao Cai province.

Temperatures have plummeted to around minus three degrees Celsius, according to local media.

News agencies reported that Hoang Lien Son Mountain had seen the most severe frost in 40 years and that this was currently the longest cold snap on record for Vietnam.

Thousands of cattle have been killed by the cold in the northern provinces during the record month-long cold spell, particularly in the northern provinces near southern China.

Highland areas have naturally been worse hit, with 2,000 animals frozen in Ha Giang, around 1,500 in Son La and 1,000 in Lang Son, according to Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Cao Duc Phat.

In addition, director of the ministry’s cultivation department, Nguyen Tri Ngoc, reported that 53,000 hectare of rice and 5,000 hectare of grain land had also been devastated by the cold in 16 provinces, including in Hai Duong, Phu Tho, Thai Binh, Hung Yen, Ha Nam and Haiphong City.

Mr Ngoc also blamed the farmers for not heeding ministry warnings of the cold.

The current record cold spell started on January 14 with previous long cold spells lasting for 28 days in 1989 and 26 days in 1968.

Tourists traveling to the region should heed weather warnings and be prepared for unusual cold.