Rains will likely continue across Vietnam during the coming holidays this weekend, under the influence of a combination of cold air and a low-pressure system strengthened offshore, the central weather agency has forecast. 

The rainy weather pattern starting on Friday morning may go on during Reunification Day (April 30) and International Workers' Day (May 1), as the cold air mass is moving southward while the low-pressure system in the East Vietnam Sea may turn into a tropical depression, the National Center for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting said on Friday.

As of Saturday night, the cold air will affect the northern mountainous area before expanding its impacts to other localities southward.  

From Friday evening through Sunday, the northern region will have moderate to heavy rains together with thunderstorms and rainfall ranging from 40 to 100 millimeters, according to the center.

In the area from Thanh Hoa to Thua Thien-Hue Provinces, north-central Vietnam, precipitation will fluctuate from 50 to 120 millimeters, accompanied by whirlwinds, lightning, hail, and squalls.

From Friday through Tuesday, rains at 50 to over 100 millimeters, together with powerful winds, will slash a large region from Da Nang through Binh Thuan and from the Central Highlands to southern localities.

Flash floods and landslides may occur in mountainous areas while flooding is likely to hit low-lying locales, the center warned.  

Cold weather will cover the northern and north-central localities from Sunday with prevailing temperatures of 18 to 21 degrees Celsius, which will be lower in mountainous regions.

From early Sunday morning, the Gulf of Tonkin will have strong winds of 49 to 61 kilometers per hour and gusts of up to 74 kilometers per hour.

Sea wave heights will reach four to six meters in the northern part of the East Vietnam Sea and two to four meters in the waters off the central region from Quang Tri to Quang Ngai Provinces.

During the holidays, which last from Saturday to Tuesday, travelers to southern islands including Phu Quoc and Nam Du off Kien Giang Province will be less affected by the weather conditions but should watch out for strong gusts, said Le Dinh Quyet, deputy head of the Forecasting Department under the Southern Region Hydro-meteorological Station.

Meanwhile, many islands off the south-central region, such as Phu Quy of Binh Thuan Province and those of Khanh Hoa Province, will have bad weather due to the direct influence of the low pressure that is likely to get stronger, Quyet warned.

The same dangerous weather conditions will also be seen in the waters around islands and archipelagos in the northern region, Quyet said, adding that everybody should generally be prudent when taking sea tours.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!