Advertisement
Accidents and disasters in China
ChinaPolitics

Early winter snow in northern China threatens to deepen energy crisis

  • Colder weather expected to head south after Beijing and other areas hit by early snow as a result of the La Niña climate phenomenon
  • The country has already seen power cuts and surging energy prices and the cold spell is expected to put further pressure on supplies

Reading Time:2 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
9
Snow ducks in a Beijing street on Sunday morning. Photo: Simon Song
Catherine Wong
The climate phenomenon known as La Niña brought early snow amid plunging temperatures across northern China on the weekend as the country struggles with the worst energy crisis in a decade.

Large parts of the country, including Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, and Inner Mongolia, experienced this winter’s first significant snowfall and rain on Saturday, the China Meteorological Administration (CMA) said in a notice on Sunday.

The national weather service said northeastern provinces were likely to experience major snowfalls in the coming days, and the cold waves would continue to move southwards and hit most of China.

Snow falls on Beijing’s Forbidden City on Sunday morning. Photo: Simon Song
Snow falls on Beijing’s Forbidden City on Sunday morning. Photo: Simon Song

A yellow cold warning, the third highest level, has been issued to residents.

The CMA warned on Friday that the cold snap and snowfall could have a “negative impact” on the country’s energy supply, agriculture and transport infrastructure.

“We need to pay attention to the negative impact it brings to energy supply, human health, pandemic control, infrastructure and agriculture,” the notice said.

Advertisement