HÀ NỘI —  Recent hot weather caused fires in Sơn Tiến Commune, in the central province of Hà Tĩnh, which then spread to the neighbouring province of Nghệ An, leaving damage in Khánh Sơn Commune.

It took firefighters 14 hours to stamp out the blaze in the pine forest in Khánh Sơn Commune.

The fire, which was reported to have started around midday on Sunday, was under control by 2am on Monday. High temperatures and strong winds were said to have caused difficulties in extinguishing the fire.

Three other forest fires were reported on the same day in other hamlets in the commune.

Last month, fires reportedly destroyed about 100 hectares of forest in the central province.

In the northern province of Hà Nam, more than 300 people, police and firefighters worked to extinguish a forest fire in Thanh Lưu Commune, Thanh Liêm District.

The fire destroyed about 4.3 hectares of pine, acacia and eucalyptus trees.

A strong heat wave has hit northern and central provinces, pushing average temperatures to over 35 degrees Celsius.

Some areas have reported temperatures as high as 39 degrees Celsius, including 39.4 degrees Celsius in Chi Nê (northern province of Hòa Bình) and Vĩnh Yên City (Vĩnh Phúc Province), 39.1 degrees in Láng (Hà Nội), 39.5 degrees in Hưng Yên, 39.6 degrees in Nho Quan (Ninh Bình Province) and 40.4 degrees in Tĩnh Gia (Thanh Hóa).

The heat wave that started at the weekend is expected to last until Friday. Some regions will experience average temperatures of above 35 degrees for between 12-16 hours a day.

Experts warn that the heat wave could be dangerous if it lasts for seven consecutive days, leading to negative impacts on human health, especially the elderly and children. Heavy rains are predicted following the high temperatures. Health experts warn that such conditions are ideal for the spread of dengue fever. — VNS