Cold wave sweeps through northern China; many places welcome this winter’s first snow

Vehicles move in the snow in Harbin, capital of northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, Nov. 22, 2023. (Photo: Xinhua)

As a cold wave swept through northern China, the capital Beijing welcomed its first snow of the winter on Sunday evening. Traffic in Beijing has also been affected by the snowfall, with heavy congestion during the morning rush hour.

Following the snowfall, Beijing was covered in a silver-white coat, presenting picturesque scenes at Beihai Park, the corner towers and the Shenwu Gate of the Forbidden City. The snow covered the buildings of the Forbidden City, making the red walls and golden tiles appear more vibrant, creating a striking contrast with the pristine white snow, resulting in a beautiful and magnificent sight. Coincidentally, the Forbidden City is closed on Mondays, presenting a serene and peaceful atmosphere after closure.

Netizens were amazed by the snowy scenes and expressed optimism for a prosperous year with auspicious snowfall. Many netizens from the southern regions expressed their envy, saying, "Beijing has already seen the first snow, while in Shenzhen, we still need to use electric fans. Southerners who have never seen snow are eager to personally experience it!"

From 7 pm on Sunday to 6 am on Monday, the average snowfall in Beijing was 5.1 millimeters, with the urban area averaging 5.8 millimeters. The highest snowfall occurred in Pupuwa, Fangshan reaching 9.8 millimeters. According to Beijing Public Transport Group, as of 6 am, a total of 172 bus routes had been adjusted due to the snowy weather, including 157 routes that had been suspended, nine routes with adjusted sections, and six routes with detours and skipped stops.

Beijing Capital International Airport plans to operate 1,100 flights and transport approximately 150,000 passengers on Monday. As of 7 am, 84 flights had been executed and 59 flights had been canceled. At 6 am, the airport initiated targeted de-icing operations, and a total of 22 flights had been de-iced. The overall operation of Beijing Capital International Airport remains normal.

Affected by a strong cold air mass, the meteorological department in East China's Shandong Province issued a blue warning for cold wave and a yellow warning for road icing on Saturday, and continued to issue a yellow warning for strong winds at sea on Sunday. Under the influence of the cold wave, there was also moderate to heavy snow and local blizzards in the northwest and central regions of Shandong. In addition, Yulin city in Northwest China's Shaanxi Province experienced significant rain and snow and a drop in temperature on Sunday. Several local meteorological monitoring stations recorded snowfall at the level of heavy snow, and the average temperature dropped by 6 to 8 C.

In Zhengzhou and Xinxiang, Central China's Henan Province, primary and secondary schools, as well as kindergartens, had half-day off on Monday.

On Sunday, a significant drop in temperature occurred across most parts of Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, with the lowest temperatures expected to reach -25 to -30 C in some areas from December 10 to December 15. To cope with the extreme cold weather, various measures had been taken to strengthen water and heating supply and other livelihood guarantees. In Fujin city, the local heating company increased the frequency of inspections on heating equipment such as pipelines and valves to ensure the quality of heating.

To ensure the safety of passengers, the railway department had suspended 112 passenger trains heading to Beijing, Xiamen, Chengdu, Taiyuan, among other routes, with some trains experiencing delays.