on 27 april, arvn defenses in quảng trị province began to collapse. due to conflicting orders from their high command, arvn units joined an exodus of refugees heading southward, abandoning quảng trị city. pavn forces entered the city on the same day as the meeting between kissinger and le duc tho. the pavn offensive had become a massive conventional military operation that was being conducted on three fronts simultaneously, involving the equivalent of 15 divisions and 600 tanks. as the north vietnamese continued to gain ground in three of south vietnam's four military regions, the u.s. joint chiefs of staff updated their contingency plans (drawn up before the bombing halt of 1968) for the resumption of bombing in the north and recommended it to the president, who approved it on 8 may.