VIETNAM TODAY

Heavy rain has submerged bridges and low-water crossings in Nghe An Province, isolating more than 3,000 residents and disrupting access to two schools.

HCM City will link local health stations with general and specialist hospitals to strengthen primary healthcare and improve patient referrals, according to the municipal Health Department.

El Nino is forecast to become very strong in the final months of 2026, raising the risk of unusually intense tropical depressions and storms despite fewer systems being expected to affect Vietnam.

Heavy rainfall has caused flooding at a reservoir and submerged key roads in Nghe An Province, forcing authorities to close several transport routes to ensure public safety.

HCM City plans to spend about VND 140 trillion (USD 5.3 billion) on 87 flood-control projects between 2026 and 2030, aiming to largely address flooding at 50 of its 159 flood-prone sites.

Traditional fishing and eel trapping provide seasonal livelihoods in the Mekong Delta region, while local communities are also turning the annual floods into a tourism attraction.

Dense haze blanketed Ho Chi Minh City on September 16, obscuring high-rises and reducing visibility, while air quality was warned unsafe.

Military authorities in Phu Tho Province safely destroyed a cache of wartime ordnance and explosives on September 15, including artillery shells, grenades and 150kg of ANFO explosives.

Ca Mau has proposed a refinery and petrochemical complex with a planned capacity of up to 7 million tonnes per year, seeking inclusion in Vietnam’s national energy development plan.

Five people were killed in a fire that broke out at a four-storey house in Hanoi early on Wednesday, while four others escaped.

Authorities are investing nearly VND 37 billion (USD 1.4 million) to build the Mimosa viaduct and reinforce a landslide-prone section of Mimosa Pass in Dalat, Lam Dong Province.

Heavy rain is forecast to continue in Hanoi until September 17, with some areas of northern Vietnam expected to receive more than 200mm of rainfall.

Dozens of tonnes of debris and driftwood washed onto Nhat Le Beach in Quang Tri after heavy rains and flooding, prompting an urgent clean-up operation.

Kim Lien Market, a more than 30-year-old traditional market in Hanoi, has temporarily closed to address fire safety shortcomings identified by authorities.

Authorities at Tan Son Nhat International Airport in HCM City found five live military rounds and four spent cartridge cases in the checked baggage of a passenger bound for Thanh Hoa Province.

A Vietnamese doctor helped a British boy suffering prolonged nosebleeding on a Vietnam Airlines flight from Hanoi to London, stabilising the child mid-flight.

HCM City is accelerating inspections and redevelopment of ageing apartment blocks, including 16 severely deteriorated buildings considered at high risk of collapse.

Vietnam will officially switch off its nationwide 2G network from September 16, freeing spectrum resources for 5G, future 6G services and broader digital development.

A foreign man and woman were caught after allegedly attempting to steal more than VND 200 million (USD 7,600) worth of gold from a shop in Dak Lak Province, local authorities said.