Heavy snow hits southern China

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Source: CCTV.com | 01-17-2008 12:47

Southern China is getting a blast of winter. In the past two days, heavy snow has hit the provinces of Hubei, Hunan and Jiangxi. Freezing temperatures is tieing up traffic, and putting a major drain on power supplies.

In the past two days, heavy snow has hit the provinces of Hubei, Hunan and Jiangxi.

It's the heaviest snowfall in Hubei in 16 years.

Snow flakes began falling almost a week ago.

During that period, the average daytime temperature stayed under zero across the province.

On Monday, it snowed for over a day in the province's capital Wuhan, reaching depths of 12 centimeters and forcing the closure of a number of state highways.

In Jiangxi province, more than ten thousand vehicles were trapped on the Jiujiang Bridge over the Yangtze River, as the road and rail bridge had to be closed.

Jiangxi has issued alerts for snow storms and frozen roads.

Hunan experienced the worst frost in a decade.

The low temperatures caused icy conditions on over ten expressways that were forced to close.

In the province's capital Changsha, scores of flights were delayed or canceled by the freezing temperatures.

Continuous snowfall and low temperatures have also pushed electricity consumption to a record high in Hunan and Anhui.

Frost affected power grids in Hunan causing the circuit breakers on some lines to switch off.

Heavy snow has also affected people's daily lives elsewhere in southern China.

But some are making the best of it as the snow has helped create spectacles in some scenic spots.

Editor:Zhang Ning