Sandstorm hits North China

BEIJING/HOHHOT -- The Chinese capital Beijing was enveloped in yellow dust on Monday morning with visibility at less than 1 km, as the city's meteorological department issued a yellow warning for sandstorms, the third-most hazardous level.

In response to the dusty weather, Beijing Daxing International Airport launched a low visibility operation mechanism as visibility fell to only 400-800 meters at the airport, affecting a number of flights.

The meteorological department forecast the conditions would last till 2 p.m. Monday, with visibility expected to gradually improve thereafter.

According to its weather report, the sandstorm blew from North China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region due to the effect of cyclones and strong winds. It arrived at northwestern Hebei province neighboring Beijing on Sunday night before moving toward the nation's capital.

The concentration of hazardous airborne PM10 particles in most areas exceeded 2,000 micrograms per cubic meter on Monday, according to the Beijing Municipal Ecological and Environmental Monitoring Center. Besides, a heavy concentration of 3,572 micrograms per cubic meter was observed in Beijing's Haidian District.

The meteorological department of the Inner Mongolia autonomous region issued an orange warning for the sandstorm on Monday, which is only second to red, the most severe level. The strong sandstorm also affected the northeast of Alxa League as well as cities in Ordos and Baotou.

Among the worst-hit areas, Baotao in the western part of the region first issued an orange warning for the sandstorm on Sunday night. Following the warning, the municipal education department issued an emergency notice asking kindergartens, primary schools and junior high schools throughout the city to close on Monday.

The city has also taken emergency measures such as adding the frequency of buses to reduce people's outdoor exposure to the yellow dust.

On Monday, major highway sections in the city were closed, and flights through the city were either delayed or canceled, due to visibility standing at less than 500 meters and strong winds.