Hanoi (VNA) – The national flag carrier, Vietnam Airlines, said it has canceled ten domestic flights as from August 19 as tropical storm Dianmu, the third of its kind to hit the country so far this year, is approaching near.
The cancelation targets flights between Ho Chi Minh City, central Nha Trang and Da Nang cities and northern Hai Phong city, and between HCM City and north-central Thanh Hoa province.
On August 18, the carrier also aborted two flights between Da Nang and Pleiku in the central province of Gia Lai due to bad weather.
The airlines said it will conduct two more flights on the Da Nang-Pleiku route on August 19 and two more others on the HCM City-Thanh Hoa route on August 20 to help passengers affected by the cancelation.
The tropical storm is forecast to affect Noi Bai, Vinh and Dien Bien airports on August 19. Pleiku city is also expected to experience unfavourable weather conditions in the next few days.
According to the National Centre for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting, torrential rains began in the entire northern and northern central regions from the afternoon of August 18.
It put northern mountainous provinces of Lai Chau, Dien Bien, Son La, Lao Cai, Yen Bai, Ha Giang and Cao Bang, and the mountainous areas of central Thanh Hoa, Nghe An and Ha Tinh provinces at risk of flooding, flash floods and landslides.
The storm is becoming stronger and is predicted to hit the coast from northern Hai Phong city to Ninh Binh province at around 10 am of August 19, with the strongest winds of 75-100km per hour.-VNA