By Shi Pengyun (China Daily)
Updated: 2008-01-25 07:13

The Forbidden City appears tranquil after the first snowfall in 2008. On the iced moat is a drawing of 2008 and the Olympics' five rings. Niu Yixin

Days ago, a 76-year-old man surnamed Wan, who lives alone in Wuhan, Hubei province, was relieved after local firefighters cleaned the thick-snow off the wooden roof of his house.

"I just had a shot at calling 119 (emergency services) to seek help when I saw the roof could not stand the 30cm-thick snow any more," Wan says.

Five firefighters were sent to his house immediately. They spent two hours sweeping away the snow.

These five firefighters are among a group of people working around the clock to protect people as the heavy snow continues to fall throughout the country.

Left: A 76-year-old surnamed Wan (right) is happy to see the firefighters help him clear snow off the roofs of his house in Wuhan, Hubei province. Gui Xiaotao Right: A police officer offers free instant noodles to a driver after snow has forced the closure of freeways in some areas of Anhui. Xinhua

The snow brings great pressure to "chunyun", or the Spring Festival transport season, when millions of migrants and college students journey home. The 40-day period started last Friday.

Many people flock to the railways instead of roads or airports. The Ministry of Railways says that an estimated 178 million people will take trains during the chunyun period, almost double from last year.

Workers repair electricity pylons in Qiandongnan prefecture, Guizhou province.  Xinhua

In snow-hit Xi'an, capital of Shaanxi province, more than 500 railway police have been dispatched to guarantee passengers' safety at the extremely crowded railway station.

At the same time, thousands of road maintenance staff are working to clear the snow-covered roads.

In Hubei province, more than 30,000 such workers have been assigned to the cleanup.

In the snow-blocked highway from Beijing to Zhuhai, Guangdong province, 6,000 cleaners were sent. About 500 boxes of free instant noodles were offered to drivers.

The heavy snow has also seriously damaged the electricity grids. More than 2,000 workers repaired the frozen grids in Qiandongnan prefecture, Guizhou province.

In Anhui's Fuyang, hundreds of police were helping clear the snow off the street, much to the relief of local residents.

According to reports from the Ministry of Civil Affairs, heavy snow has affected more than 30 million people in the provinces of Anhui, Henan, Hunan, Hubei, Sichuan, Guizhou, Shaanxi and Gansu, Chongqing municipality and Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.

Left: A man holds his daughter at the snow-hit railway station in Hefei, capital of Anhui province. Yuanjing Zhizhang  Right: Passengers at the train station in Xi'an, Shaanxi province. Yuanjing Zhizhang

Although the snow has caused havoc, many children don't seem to mind it so much. As the globe is getting warmer, it may become a rare occurrence to see fields covered in white.

Such scenes are also the perfect backdrop for romantic weddings.