Following ‘summer’ days, Hanoi faces cold snap

• Winter, what winter? Mild heat wave hits Hanoi in mid-December
• Hanoians huddle up as first cold spell of winter descends
• Vietnam's winter floods claim 111

Hanoi and points north can expect a cold spell for Christmas as the central region braces for further floods ahead of New Year's Eve.

Vietnam's National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting reported the winter weather would move in on Thursday night, dropping temperatures in the capital to 16-18 degrees Celsius.

In mountainous provinces north of the city, temperatures are expected to fall as low as 13 degrees.

The cold front is expected to bring further rain as it hits a tropical depression expected to form in the East Sea, internationally known as South China Sea, this weekend.

The storm could dump between 100 and 300mm of rain on the central region between December 27-31.

Professor Phan Van Tan from the University of Natural Sciences said this winter will be warmer than usual due to effects of global warming, but the number of extremely cold days will remain unchanged.

Related news:

> Winter, what winter? Mild heat wave hits Hanoi in mid-December

> Hanoians huddle up as first cold spell of winter descends