Around 3 p.m., the city's skies darkened, prompting drivers to switch on their headlights due to reduced visibility. The inclement weather intensified with heavy rain accompanied by thunderstorms across most districts. 

Remarkably, hailstones measuring 1-1.5 cm in diameter appeared briefly in areas like District 1 and District 4 before dissipating.

Mr. Le Son, a resident of District 10, recounted encountering the sudden hailstorm while on Pham Ngu Lao Street. "As I sought refuge from the rain, I distinctly heard cracking sounds. Looking outside, I witnessed hail falling for over two minutes," he said.

According to Mr. Le Dinh Quyet, Deputy Head of the Forecasting Department at the Southern Hydrometeorological Station, hail occurrences are rare but not unheard of in Ho Chi Minh City, typically happening 1-2 times annually.

Explaining the conditions conducive to hail formation, Mr. Quyet highlighted high temperatures, humidity, and intense convection in the atmosphere. 

"Hail forms when water droplets condense into ice within towering convective clouds, descending to the ground," he explained. 

While today's hailstones were relatively small, Mr. Quyet cautioned that larger hailstones could pose risks such as damaging roofs, crops, windows, and vehicles, and even causing injury if they strike people.

Earlier in the day, at 2:30 p.m., the Southern Hydrometeorological Station issued a monitoring notice indicating thunderstorm activity in the districts of Can Gio, Binh Chanh, Nha Be, District 7, District 8, District 1, and Thu Duc City. 

Thunderstorms were predicted to persist, bringing showers, thunder, lightning, and potential hail and strong gusts of wind (5-7 on the Beaufort scale, or 8-17 m/s).

Tuan Kiet