Intense hailstorms rained down on provinces located in northern Vietnam, resulting in three deaths, 13 injured, crops destroyed and 6,000 houses seriously damaged.
The storm affected the provinces of Ha Gyang, Vinh Fook and Lai Chau. According to reports, the hail reached 5 cm in diameter.
About 810 homes in the Hoang Su Phi, Xin Man, Yen Min, Don Wang, and Meo WAC were damaged in Ha Giang. Winds demolished the roofs of 229 houses in Sin Man, while 139 houses were damaged in other areas. The damage is estimated at approximately $ 94,000, or 2.2 billion dong.
According to Wantian, an official in the Xinman commune in the province, heavy rains, hail and strong winds devastated crops and damaged roads.
Lu Wan San, a resident of Chi-FO in Hoang Su, said the roof of his house was completely torn down while his two buffaloes were struck by lightning.
In the Lai Chau region, the hail lasted about 30 minutes, affecting houses and crops in the areas of Tan Uyen, Tam Duong, Nam Nhun, Muong Tae, Fong Tho and the city of Lai Chau. Affected residents have been relocated to safer areas, said Xuan Tinh, deputy chief secretary of the Disaster Management, Search and Rescue Steering Committee.
Severe weather continued on Thursday, and witnesses say the hail storm came after strong winds, destroying many houses and injuring at least 13 people.
Authorities said that although floods affected some cities, heavy rain days helped alleviate the drought in Vinh Phuk.
On Friday, April 24, three were reported as thunderstorms hit several mountainous provinces. One person was killed in Ha Jiang Province after being hit by a fallen tree. Another man died when his house collapsed after a landslide.
The Central Committee of the Vietnamese Red Cross Society (VNRK) announced that it will provide victims with a relief package worth more than $ 12,000 or 270 million dong in cash and in kind. Financial assistance will be provided to households with wounded and damaged homes, especially the poor and the disabled, as well as older people and people with children under the age of five.
Tinh noted that hail is a rare occurrence in Vietnam. However, last month the northern region was battered by severe hail storms, which lasted from 30 to 40 minutes.
The National Center for Hydrometeorology Forecasting said that air temperatures in the northern and north-central provinces will drop to 15-18 ° C. Some northern mountainous provinces may experience temperatures below 14 ° C.