Beijing's 92-day dry spell threatens 90 percent of local wheat

For the past 92 days, Beijing has seen the worst drought in 30 years, and as a result, 90 percent of wheat seedlings are on the verge of death, according to stats from the Beijing meteorological observatory.

The drought is one of the longest in the history of New China's weather records, which have been kept since 1951, and is second only to the drought that lasted from Oct. 24, 1970 to Feb. 16, 1971.

Chen Dagang, climate section chief of the Beijing meteorological observatory, pointed out that during winter it rarely rains or snows in Beijing, and the situation is even worse this winter. The most recent effective precipitation fell last year from Oct. 23 to Oct. 24.

He said cold air traveling fast with high intensity in Beijing coupled with the weak warm air in southern China led to the drought this winter.

By Li Yancheng, People's Daily Online