Hundreds of cattle die in severe cold weather in northern Vietnam

People move their buffaloes to lower areas to avoid the- cold in Lao Cai Province in the northwest of Vietnam

By Phong Lan- Deputy head of the World News Desk
Dantri Online Newspaper

HANOI: More than 600 cattle have died after days of extreme cold weather in some northern and central mountainous regions of Vietnam, the Central Committee for Flood and Storm Control said Wednesday in a report.

A biting cold snap has ravaged the northern and central regions since January 7, bringing frost and snow to many places.

A man carries a dead buffalo on his motorbike

The lowest temperature in many localities ranged from 4-10 degrees centigrade while some mountainous areas in Lao Cai, Lai Chau and Nghe An provinces have had temperatures of below zero.

Northwestern provinces have been suffering the greatest damage, especially Dien Bien, Son La, and Lao Cai, which have lost 179, 129, and 128 cattle, respectively, the report said.

Many other livestock and a large area of crops have also been badly damaged.

Despite being warned about the strong cold spell, many farmers in the remote mountainous areas do not have good conditions to protect their livestock.

Military officers patrol in snowy weather in Lao Cai Province 

In 2007, a historic cold snap that lasted 34 days in northern Vietnam killed over 200,000 livestock, mostly cows and buffaloes in the mountainous areas.

The bone-chilling cold weather has also affected local people’s health with hospitals in Hanoi and Lai Chau reporting a rising number of patients with strokes and respiratory problems, especially elderly people and children.

Hundreds of schools in the northern mountainous provinces allowed their students to stay at home from January 11 to avoid the chill.

This is the strongest cold snap recorded this winter in Vietnam, according to the National Centre for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting.

Trees covered in frost in Son La Province in Northwest Vietnam