Here are the leading news stories of today, September 4:

Politics

-- Vessel Badaro carrying 189 naval officers and sailors from South Korea is scheduled to arrive in the central Vietnamese city of Da Nang on Monday, commencing their four-day visit to the city.

Society

-- Major theme parks in Ho Chi Minh City including Dam Sen, located in District 11 and Suoi Tien, in District 9, were filled with people on Saturday and Sunday, who were celebrating the holiday marking Vietnam’s National Day (September 2).

-- A 36-year-old tourist drowned while visiting the Bo Cap Vang (Golden Scorpion) ecotourism area in the southern province of Dong Nai with his wife and children on National Day, local police said on Sunday, adding that he had ignored the request to wear lifejackets.

-- Managers of 23/9 Park in Da Nang City have asked local authorities for permission to shut down a zoo within the venue due to the limited number of animals.

-- A total of 50 traffic accidents occurred across Vietnam on the national day holiday weekend (September 2 and 3), killing 36 people and injuring 42 others, according to the National Committee for Traffic Safety.

-- The train SE3 traveling from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City collided with an excavator in the north-central province of Quang Binh on Sunday morning, causing minor injuries to the driver of the excavator. The railway resumed its operation on the evening of the same day.

-- A recent probe by Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper has revealed that several taxi drivers in front of the Oncology Hospital, located in Binh Thanh District, Ho Chi Minh City, have been overcharging passengers. 

-- An internal graft check among regulatory bodies under the Ho Chi Minh City administration from August 1, 2016 to July 31, 2017 has found only one case of corruption, administrators said on Sunday.

-- A ship carrying five million liters of gasoline of dubious origin is being held by the border guard unit in the south-central province of Khanh Hoa, officers said on Sunday.

Business

-- Vietnam exported over 12.6 million metric tons of cement in the first eight months of 2017, exceeding this year’s original goal of 15 million metric tons, according to the Ministry of Construction.

-- A Vietnamese-made speedboat, built by the military-run 189 Co., was launched on Sunday, which will be used by the Ho Chi Minh City-based Greenline DP Co. for the river bus route from the city’s downtown area to the outskirt district of Can Gio.

Education

-- Google has launched the fifth season of the Launchpad Accelerator program, which is designed to support startup projects in selected countries, including Vietnam.

Sports

-- The Yonex Sunrise Vietnam Open 2017 badminton tournament is scheduled to start in Ho Chi Minh City on Monday with the participation of 330 athletes from many countries. The prize money is worth a combined US$65,000.

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