A strong cold front has brought widespread snowfall and sharp temperature drops across northern China, with Heilongjiang, Jilin and Xinjiang's Kashgar region stepping up emergency measures to maintain clear roads and ensure smooth transportation.
In Harbin, capital of northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, snowfall began on Tuesday and continued across multiple districts. By 17:00, most townships in Yilan County had recorded 6 to 8 millimeters of snowfall accumulation, with snow depths reaching 13 to 15 centimeters.
Local authorities promptly activated emergency response plans, deploying crews for snow removal and traffic control.
Meteorological department warned that temperatures will plunge significantly at night as the snowfall ended, with minimum temperatures in some areas expected to fall below minus 30 degrees Celsius.
In northeast China's Jilin Province, widespread snowfall affected cities including Changchun, Baicheng and Songyuan, posing challenges to railway operations.
Railway authorities implemented pre-arranged snow-response plans, using equipment such as wind-powered snow blowers to clear key sections of track and prevent switches from freezing.
Additional staff workers were deployed at passenger stations to guide travelers and maintain orderly boarding.
"We have actively organized on-site de-icing and snow removal operations, stationed dedicated staff at escalators and passage entrances to ensure passenger safety during boarding and alighting, and dynamically opened additional ticket windows based on passenger needs to facilitate relevant transaction, so as to minimize the impact of adverse weather on travel to the greatest extent possible," said Zhang Wei, director of the passenger department at Jilin Railway Station.
Kashgar Prefecture in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region saw its first snowfall of this winter late Monday night. Local sanitation departments deployed both mechanical equipment and staff to remove snow on major and secondary roads.
Snow removal operations on slippery sections and areas around schools were carried out repeatedly to ensure roads were cleared as snow fell and traffic remained unobstructed.
"Our work team is responsible for this section of Renmin East Road. We begin clearance work at 9 p.m., removing snow and ice from sidewalks, electric bicycle lanes, and traffic light intersections to ensure that roads are clean and dry by morning when residents head out for work or school," said a sanitation worker.
Northern China battles heavy snow as authorities ensure transportation safety
