13 Nov 09 – Unusually early snowstorms in northern China have
stranded tens of thousands of vehicles and motorists, led to the deaths of 38 people,
forced the evacuation of 158,000 people, and forced delays or
cancellation of hundreds of flights in several cities, including
China's capital city, Beijing.
The snow - heaviest in the area since records
began - has caused more than half a billion dollars in damage,
including the collapse of more than 7,000 buildings and damage to
297,000 acres (120,000 hectares) of crops, the Civil Affairs
Ministry said Friday.
In Hebei province, three children died after
the roof of their canteen collapsed under the weight of the snow.
Another 28 were hospitalized.
Another child died in neighbouring Henan province and seven were
injured, again when the roof the school canteen collapsed. Three of
the students are in a critical condition.
This is the second year and a row that China has been hammered by
massive snowstorms. About 20 months ago, the most severe snowstorm
in five decades in southern China caused an estimated $22 billion in
direct economic losses, destroying 29.4 million acres (11.9 million
hectares) of cropland, and forcing the government to hand out 63.3
billion yuan of subsidies to farmers.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/8358162.stm
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091113/ap_on_re_as/as_china_snow_storms
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20670001&sid=ad0dn1Nzvk8g
Thanks to Louise (pebble), Dan Govier and Willem Wolters in the
Netherlands for these links