Hail and thunderstorms blew away the roof of a house in Mộc Châu District, Sơn La Province, on Sunday. — VNA/VNS Photo

SƠN LA — Hundreds of houses and several hectares of vegetable and rice crops in the northern mountainous provinces of Sơn La, Lào Cai and Lai Châu were reportedly damaged by heavy rain, hail and thunderstorms.

According to preliminary statistics from provincial Steering Committees for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, the extreme weather from Friday to Sunday destroyed and blew away the roofs of 716 houses and injured two people in Sơn La and Lào Cai provinces.

Some section of rock revetments, barriers, roads and other constructions were also damaged, Tài Nguyên và Môi Trường (National Resource and Environment) newspaper reported.

Hail and thunderstorms also seriously damaged more than 17ha of rice, 177ha of vegetables and 970ha of fruit trees such as mangoes, plums, longan and banana that are ready to be harvested.

Many big trees were uprooted in Lai Châu Province. — VNA/VNS Photo

Thunderstorms killed 355 types of poultry, with the damage estimated to be worth about VNĐ33.9 billion (US$1.44 million).

Earlier, the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting reported a cold spell would hit the northern region.

Heavy rain, landslides and flash floods were forecasted in Lào Cai, Yên Bái, Hòa Bình, Sơn La and Điện Biên provinces.

The cold weather is predicted to hit the central and south-central region on Monday. — VNS