Northern Vietnam to See Temporary Sun Before Heavy Rain Later in Week

Northern Vietnam is expected to see a temporary return to sunny weather and rising temperatures early in the week, but widespread thunderstorms are forecast to return around July 19. The Central Highlands and Southern regions will continue to experience frequent afternoon showers. According to the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, during the week of July 5-12, a trough of low pressure combined with a low-pressure vortex caused many days of thunderstorms in the North. Specifically, July 8-9 saw widespread moderate to heavy rainfall, with some mountainous areas experiencing very heavy downpours. As the low-pressure trough weakens, rainfall in the North is expected to decrease rapidly until July 17, with only localized showers. Daytime temperatures will be sunny, with highs generally ranging from 33-35 degrees Celsius, and some areas may experience heatwaves. However, from July 18, the low-pressure trough is predicted to reform and become more active. Around July 19, the North is likely to experience widespread thunderstorms, followed by several days of moderate to heavy rainfall. According to AccuWeather, Hanoi's temperatures at the beginning of next week will drop by about 3-5 degrees Celsius compared to today, ranging from 27-31 degrees Celsius mid-week, before gradually increasing to a peak of around 37 degrees Celsius by the end of the week. In Sa Pa (Lao Cai), temperatures will generally be between 19-25 degrees Celsius. Until July 13, areas from Thanh Hoa to Hue City will experience scattered showers and thunderstorms, with rainfall amounts generally between 10-30 mm, and over 80 mm in some places. Afterwards, rainfall will gradually decrease, and widespread heatwaves are not expected to appear. The Central Highlands and Southern regions will continue to be affected by the southwest monsoon. Until July 15, these regions will maintain showers and thunderstorms in the afternoons and evenings, with rainfall amounts generally between 15-30 mm, and over 100 mm in some places. During July 16-17, as the southwest monsoon weakens, rainfall will temporarily decrease. From July 18-19, the monsoon will become active again, leading to an increase in widespread showers and thunderstorms, with moderate to heavy rainfall in many areas. The heavy rainfall from July 8 to 11 caused significant damage in many mountainous and midland provinces of the North. According to the Directorate for Water Resources and Disaster Prevention, one person was injured in Son La province when rocks fell on a car due to a landslide. Seven houses collapsed, 190 were damaged, and 90 households were evacuated urgently due to landslide risks. Furthermore, 137 houses were flooded or affected by landslides. Flooding also caused damage to over 935 hectares of rice fields and crops. Dozens of livestock and hundreds of poultry died or were washed away, and nearly 14 hectares of aquaculture farms were affected. Many national and provincial roads experienced landslides and flooding, causing traffic disruptions, but these have been rectified. Additionally, thousands of meters of irrigation canals, numerous infrastructure projects, schools, and power systems were damaged. Over 4,000 households in Son La lost electricity but have since had it restored. Source: VnExpress