China: Snowstorms spoil Lunar New Year travel for millions

Cars are stuck on a highway due to heavy snow in Wuhan, in central China's Hubei province on February 6, 2024

Kelly Ng

News from BBC

As millions of people travel for the Lunar New Year holiday, snowstorms and freezing weather have disrupted vehicles in many areas of China.

Drivers were left stranded on freezing highways for weeks as hundreds of flights and train services were canceled.

Millions of people in China begin their “largest monthly people movement” as a result of the holiday and return to their homes.

Since Covid- 19 curbs were removed more than a year before, travel has also improved.

For the Lunar New Time, also known as the Spring Festival, officials anticipate 480 million visits. In comparison to the previous year, the amount is 40 % higher.

The worst spring wind since 2008 has been predicted by China’s weather services. The majority of the melting problems have been felt in the country’s northern region, which includes regions like Hebei, Hubei and Anhui.

Chinese people claimed on social media that their plans to reconnect with family had been derailed by the extreme cold. As energy lines were cut, they posted images of themselves stranded in carriages and train stations.

The Lunar New Year is celebrated on a Saturday, February 10.

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People of Wuhan were unable to leave the city three years ago when Spring Festival coincides with a storm due to the Covid- 19 outbreak. We ca n’t get into it now, three years later, according to a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. A video was posted by the X customer showing a congested train station with lines of people clinging to escalators because they were unable to move.

Some people expressed gratitude to those who braved the chilly to bring warm water and food to travellers who were stranded on icy roads. In one video, a woman in the Hubei state capital of Xiantao was seen refilling water bottles for people who were left stranded on the road with pulleys. Just place your drink in the box, please. She said there was no need to pay.

Passengers wait for their train at Hongqiao railway station in Shanghai on January 20, 2023

Times when average daily temperature fall below 0C, far exceeding the problems of past years, have been observed in about 255 locations across the nation.

Due to the icy conditions, almost 100 highway toll facilities in Anhui are closed to traffic. 4, 000 cars were reportedly stuck on the streets as of Monday, according to state broadcaster Video.

A ceiling collapsed at a nearby market on Monday, causing one person to pass away and 13 other people to suffer injuries. The city was in the Hunan province.

According to CCTV, the central government of China will spend 141 million yuan ($ 20 million,$ 15.6 million ) on urgent highway and related work in 11 provinces.

According to China National Emergency Broadcasting, the bad weather is anticipated to last for a few more times.