HCMC - Hailstorms and strong winds that struck 12 provinces and cities nationwide from the evening of May 2 to the morning of May 4 injured 12 people, according to a preliminary report from Vietnam’s Ministry of Agriculture and Environment as of May 5.

Damage to property and infrastructure has been significant. A total of 3,110 houses were damaged or had their roofs blown off, with the hardest-hit areas being Thai Nguyen (1,382 houses) and Nghe An (953 houses). The storms also affected 25 schools and 12 community cultural houses, toppled 103 power poles, and caused about 100 meters of embankment to collapse. Notably, in Nghe An, a lightning strike ruptured a storage tank, spilling around 2,000 tons of molasses from the Song Lam Sugar JSC, while in Quang Tri a fishing vessel was reported sunk. Agriculture suffered heavy losses, with 15,722 hectares of rice and crops affected. Nghe An and Ha Tinh were the worst-hit in terms of production, with damaged areas of 7,560 hectares and 5,827 hectares, respectively. Authorities are now guiding farmers on recovery measures for salvageable crops to minimize economic losses while helping residents repair damaged homes, stabilize their lives, and continue assessing losses to provide timely support.