Archive for ‘blizzard’

30/11/2019

Beijing embraces timely first snow

CHINA-BEIJING-SNOW-SCENERY (CN)

A child makes a snowman at the Palace Museum in Beijing, capital of China, Nov. 30, 2019. Beijing saw a snowfall Friday night. (Xinhua/Meng Dingbo)

BEIJING, Nov. 30 (Xinhua) — Beijing on Saturday was covered in white after experiencing the first snow this winter, which experts said was timely after a much-delayed snowfall in last year’s droughty winter.

The snow, which began Friday evening, reached the level of a blizzard in the outlying districts of Yanqing and Changping. In the city proper, the average precipitation was 3.1 millimeters, said the Beijing Meteorological Service.

“The first snowfall in Beijing this winter was most timely. Records show since 1961, Beijing’s average first winter snowfall happened exactly on Nov. 29,” said Guo Jinlan, a chief forecaster with the service.

The city’s first snow last winter did not fall until February this year.

Experts expect the snow to reduce the risks of wildfire and clean the air in Beijing, whose air pollution usually deteriorates in the winter season.

The city has issued an alert for icy roads and advised citizens to beware of health problems during the low temperature and windy weather after the snow.

Source: Xinhua

09/02/2019

Relief reaches blizzard-hit Tibetan prefecture

XINING, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) — After days of snow storms, roads in many areas of Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, northwest China’s Qinghai Province, are covered under snow as deep as 45 centimeters.

Tsertra, deputy director of the Yushu Disaster Relief Work and Emergency Headquarters, said one city and five other counties in Yushu were hit by the snow storms. Thousands of livestock were reported dead.

The local authority has sent vets, medicine and fodders to the blizzard-hit areas.

Drapa Sum, director of the health center in Gyeldo County, one of the worst-hit areas, said that he and his colleagues this week visited a number of blizzard-hit villages, some 5,000 meters above sea level on average.

“Villagers were relieved to see doctors and vets come to their rescue,” said Drapa Sum.

He said the trips were extremely dangerous, as roads were buried in snow.

By Friday, 4,653 tonnes of fodders had been transported to the blizzard-hit areas. The bureau of agriculture and rural affairs with the Qinghai Provincial Government has set aside 10 million yuan (about 1.48 million U.S. dollars) to purchase more fodders, said He Bo, deputy head of Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefectural Government.

He said the primary relief work now is to clear the snow-covered roads to ensure supplies reach the disaster-hit villages. Strong winds are blowing snow to block the roads despite the efforts to clear them.

The snowstorms have also led to the deaths of wild animals by the hundred in the region.

The Administration for the National Park of Sanjiangyuan (Three-River-Source) has earmarked a fund of 100,000 yuan for helping wild animals survive the harsh winter.

Source: Xinhua

29/12/2018

China issues yellow alert for blizzard

BEIJING, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) — China’s meteorological authorities issued a yellow alert for a heavy snowstorm on Saturday morning.

The National Meteorological Center (NMC) said snowstorms would hit parts of Guizhou, Hunan and Jiangxi provinces, with up to 15 centimeters of new snow expected.

The observatory warned that the snow would affect transport during rush hours, and asked local authorities to be prepared for possible damage to crops, plants and livestock.

On Saturday morning, the NMC also issued a yellow alert for a cold wave as the cold front will bring down temperatures by 10 degrees Celsius in the next three days in most parts of China.

China has a four-tier color-coded weather warning system, with red representing the most severe, followed by orange, yellow and blue.

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