China ploughs through heavy snow

Source: CCTV.com | 01-29-2008 13:47

Heavy snowfall continues to hit large areas across China, worsening traffic that has already been paralyzed during the country's spring festival travel season.

The Beijing-Guangzhou line has been the worst hit railway link. Heavy snow has paralyzed most sections of the line, causing electricity black-outs. A huge number of travellers along the line are delayed, with more than 500 thousand passengers affected in the Guangzhou area alone. The Ministry of Railways has mobilized 35 trains to help disperse the stranded passengers.

Wang Yongping, spokesman of Ministry of Railways,said, "We don't know how soon the railway line will recover, because we have unexpected factors like weather and electricity supply."

According to the Ministry of Communications, most of the highways in Hubei, Jiangsu, Anhui, Shanxi, Sichuan and Chongqing have been closed due to a fresh wave of snow. A seven-kilometer-long tailback is still stranded in the Guangdong section of the Beijing-Zhuhai highway.

Guangdong Provincial Transport Administration has sent out extra buses to provide back up.

He Jianzhong, spokesman of Chinese Ministry of Communications, said, "Cooperation between provinces should be reinforced to prevent new traffic jams."

Many airports have been closed in the southern and eastern regions. In Shanghai, 96 flights were delayed or cancelled on Sunday and Monday. The General Administration of Civil Aviation of China has held emergency meetings to discuss the crisis.

Wang Ronghua, director of Transport Dept.,CAAC, said, "With our priority on safety, we will let flights take off whenever the weather allows to ease the situation."

The China Meteorological Administration has issued an orange alert for severe snowstorms in the central and eastern parts of the country. It warned local governments and departments to prepare for the coming bad weather. Transport, railway, electricity and communication departments have also been advised to prepare clean-ups after the snowfall.

Editor:Zhang Ning