Cold wave expected to hit central and eastern China during holiday

A cold wave is expected to hit the central and eastern areas of China during the upcoming Labor Day holiday, which will last from Wednesday to Sunday, bringing rainstorms and severe consecutive weather, the National Meteorological Center said on Monday.

"From Friday to Sunday morning, the central and eastern part of China is expected to experience a significant and widespread heavy rainfall and severe consecutive weather," the center said, adding that due to the cold air, some areas in North China, the southern part of Northeast China and provinces like Henan and Anhui will have temperature drops by 4 to 8 degrees C, with some areas experiencing a decrease of up to 10 C.

In certain areas of the central and southern part of Hunan province, the central and southern part of Jiangxi province, the central and northern part of the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region and the central and western part of Guangdong province, accumulated precipitation during this period is expected to reach 80 to 160 millimeters, with some areas in Guangxi and Guangdong achieving 250 to 350 mm, the center said.

During the period, areas in the central and western parts of the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, the eastern part of Northwest China, the eastern part of Southwest China and South China will have thunderstorms and strong winds. The winds will blow as strong as 8 to 10 on the 13-tier Beaufort scale ranging from 0 to 12, with some areas reaching up to 11, the second-highest on the scale, the center added.

The center warned of potential rainstorm disasters in Guangdong, Guangxi, Jiangxi and Hunan due to the frequent occurrence of extreme weather since April. Residents and tourists should also keep away from mountainous areas and regions easy to be affected by secondary disasters, such as mudslides, landslides and waterlogging.

The center forecast that on the first two days of the holiday, most areas in the central and eastern areas of China will have sunny weather. However, the southeastern part of the Xizang autonomous region and the central and eastern parts of South China will continue to experience heavy rainfall.