VietNamNet Bridge - Thousands of tourists have flocked to Sapa to see the snow-covered landscape while local people are in dismay.

Losses from the recent prolonged, heavy snowfall in numerous districts of northern mountainous Lao Cai province amount to nearly 10 billion VND (4.7 million USD), according to local official.

Sa Pa resort town is the hardest hit with a loss of up to 5 billion VND, said Ma Quang Trung, Director of the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Rare heavy snow damaged large areas of crops while blocking traffic on many roads in the town.

According to the Office of Agriculture and Rural Development of Sa Pa, more than 100 hectares of chayote and another 100 hectares of flowers were buried under snow.

Thick ice also blocked about 10 kilometres of Highway 4D linking Lao Cai and Lai Chau provinces. Efforts have been made by local authorities to clear the roads.

Freezing temperatures also forced more than 8,500 pre-school and primary school students to cease their schooling.

Tran Thi Dung, a flower grower in O Qui Ho, said with great sadness on December 17 that thick snow had come all of a sudden, destroying her flowers worth hundreds of millions of Vietnam dong.

The Hoa Dao Cooperative in Sapa town has fared even worse with more than 50 hectares of chayote and rose destroyed at an estimated lost of VND25 billion. Fifty member families are just waiting for snow thawing to start a new crop from a scratch.

Along Highway 4D from Trung Chai to Coc San, hundreds of huts have been set up to provide shelter for buffaloes.

By December 17, dozens of buffaloes had died in addition to the destruction of more than 2,000 sq.m of orchid gardening and 60 percent of chayote grown acreage.

Students in 63 schools in Sa Pa, including 20 nurseries, 22 primary and 21 secondary schools, were allowed to stay at home on December 16 and 17.

More than 500 blankets and many presents have been sent to the students to help ease their difficulties, the office said.

On December 16, temperatures plunged to below 5 degrees Celsius across the whole of Lao Cai province. Particularly, the mercury dropped to minus 3 degrees Celsius in Sa Pa, coupled with rain and snow.

Earlier on December 15, heavy snow and a thick layer of ice covered O Quy Ho Pass in Sa Pa, while the temperature was recorded at minus 1 degree Celsius.

This type of weather, while not unheard-of, occasionally occurs in the highest northern mountains during winter.

The snowfall attracted tourists to Sa Pa, causing congestion from the provincial capital of Lao Cai to the resort town.

From the height of 1,500m above sea level, icy sheets were about 2.5 cm thick.-

Cold weather closes schools in Ha Giang Province

Students in all grades in the northern mountainous Ha Giang Province's Dong Van and Meo Vac districts will not attend school today after temperatures dropped below one degree Celsius.

Local teachers are still required to report for duty at schools every day and will visit villages to encourage students to return to schools when the weather becomes warmer, head of the Meo Vac District Education Department Lam Quang Hung said.

Statistic from the province detailed that over 37,000 students were off from schools yesterday due to cold weather. The provincial department of education and training urged districts to maintain their schools and pay special attention to student's health care, food, and medicine.

In the past several days, snow has fallen in the communes Lung Phin, Lung Cu, Pho Bang, Sa Phin of Dong Van District and Thuong Phung, Xin Cai of Meo Vac District.

Snow in Sapa:

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