Storm strands tourists at Great Wall, killing 3_美文

Storm strands tourists at Great Wall, killing 3

The same day, authorities raised a weather alert from blue to orange, indicating the second-most severe conditions in the four-level system. The alert remained at that level until 6 pm.

Transport links throughout the capital and surrounding areas were affected by the bad weather.

A spokesman for Beijing Capital International Airport said that, by 11:30 am on Sunday, 23 flights had been canceled and another five flights had been delayed by more than an hour. Flight schedules had returned to normal by 2 pm.

Traffic authorities took temporary measures on several expressways that were severely covered by snow or rainwater, or roads with slippery surfaces.

One bright side to the cold front is that many cities in North China have decided to switch on their heating systems earlier than usual.

The Beijing Municipal Commission of City Administration and Environment fired up its boilers on Sunday instead of waiting until Nov 15, as it usually does. And Shenyang, Liaoning province, and Zhangjiakou, Hebei province, started theirs last week.

About the broadcaster:

CJ Henderson is a foreign expert for China Daily's online culture department. CJ is a graduate of the University of Sydney where she completed a Bachelors degree in Media and Communications, Government and International Relations, and American Studies. CJ has four years of experience working across media platforms, including work for 21st Century Newspapers in Beijing, and a variety of media in Australia and the US.