Vietnam's Northern region is encountering the longest spell of cold weather which started on Jan. 14, local press reported Friday.
By Feb. 14, the ongoing spell has lasted for 32 days, breaking the 31-day record in 1989, Youth newspaper quoted Bui Minh Tang, director of the National Center for Hydrometeorology Forecast, as saying.
During the spell, forecast to end on Feb. 18, the temperature has sometimes decreased to below 10 Celsius degrees in many northern localities. And temperature of minus two degrees Celsius has been recorded in some areas in the two border provinces of LaoCai and Lang Son.
The spell has caused a number of people to suffer from respiratory illness, and led some old people to death, he said.
Around 100,000 hectares of newly-grown rice and other crops, and 25,000 cattle have died during the spell, Pioneer newspaper reported. In Nghe An province alone, 13,600 hectares of crops and over 1,000 buffalos, bulls and cows have died.
In the next one or two months, the Northern region is likely to face a drought, New Hanoi newspaper reported. Source: Xinhua
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