Beijing, the capital city of China, has experienced an unprecedented cold wave that has shattered a 70-year-old record for sub-zero temperatures in December. Since last week, northern and northeastern parts of the country have been hit by freezing temperatures, with some areas plummeting to minus 40 degrees Celsius and Fahrenheit due to the influx of bitter cold air from the Arctic.
According to state-backed Beijing Daily, as of Sunday, a weather observatory in Beijing has documented over 300 hours of below-freezing temperatures since December 11, surpassing the previous monthly record set in 1951. Moreover, the city has endured an astonishing nine consecutive days of temperatures below minus 10 degrees Celsius, intensifying the frigid conditions.
The bone-chilling cold is not limited to Beijing alone. Several cities in the central province of Henan, located southwest of Beijing, are grappling with a shortage of winter heating supplies. Jiaozuo, a city in Henan, is particularly affected, as heating boilers at JiaoZuo WanFang Aluminum Manufacturing, one of the main suppliers, have broken down. Consequently, residents in certain areas are in urgent need of heat supply.
State media reports suggest that JiaoZuo WanFang Aluminum is working diligently to fix the malfunctioning boilers and expects to resume supply by December 26. However, specific details regarding the number of affected boilers remain undisclosed. Meanwhile, to prioritize residential heat usage, the city has suspended heat supply for most businesses, except essential establishments like hospitals and senior centers. Nevertheless, some residential areas could still experience disruptions during the maintenance period.
In addition to Jiaozuo, two other cities in Henan, namely Puyang and Pingdingshan, have already halted heat supply to government departments and administrative institutions, giving precedence to residential heating requirements due to the extreme cold. Weather forecasts predict sub-zero temperatures in these three cities on Sunday, and the province's weather authority warns that several other areas in Henan could witness lows of minus 15 degrees Celsius over the weekend.
Fortunately, relief may be on its way as warm air is anticipated to flow from north to south, gradually raising temperatures starting from the weekend. By Sunday afternoon, China's weather authority reported that temperatures in central and eastern regions had already begun to rebound, with some areas experiencing temperature increases of more than 10 degrees Celsius.
Despite the challenges posed by this exceptional cold wave, the resilience of the affected regions, coupled with the anticipated warm-up, offers hope for some reprieve from the harsh winter conditions.