Sa Pa Town is engulfed in fog and cold in the northern mountainous province of Lào Cai due to the severe cold spell on Tuesday. —VNA/VNS Photo Quốc Khánh

HÀ NỘI — The severe cold spell, which has blanketed the northern region as well as the provinces of Thanh Hóa and Nghệ An since last Saturday, is expected to last until following Monday.

Yesterday, the National Centre for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting warned that the severe cold weather would continue hitting the northern mountainous provinces with the lowest temperatures of 4-7 degrees Celsius. The temperature would 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 provinces of Thanh Hóa and Nghệ An would 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 provinces from Hà Tĩnh to Khánh Hòa. Especially the provinces from Đà Nẵng to Bình Thuận 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.

In the Gulf of Tonkin, the northeast wind is strong, and sea waves are at 2.0-4.0m in height. In the northern part of the East Sea, including the Hoàng Sa (Paracel) Archipelago waters, sea waves are 5-7m high, and seas are very rough.

Strong northeast wind and 4-6 metre sea waves also hit the seas from provinces of Quảng Trị to Cà Mau, the central and western parts of the East Sea, including the Trường Sa (Spratly) Archipelago.

Strong winds and high waves at sea are likely to affect ship movements and other activities.

Low temperatures can affect crops and livestock.

Last Saturday, the Standing Office of the National Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control issued official dispatch No. 18/CĐ-QG, ordering relevant localities to respond to the severe cold weather.

Authorities in the localities affected by the severe cold should guide livestock households on keeping warm and storing food to ensure hunger prevention for their livestock.

People are told not to use traditional coal stoves for heating in closed rooms to avoid unfortunate incidents causing fatalities, as happened in some localities in recent years.

The localities must have plans to ensure students’ safety during the severe cold weather. — VNS