BEIJING - Heavy snowfall in the far western Chinese region of Xinjiang and temperatures as low as minus -43 degrees Celsius (-45 F) have forced the evacuation of almost 100,000 people, the state weather bureau said on Friday.
Rescue teams have rushed to the area where up to one 1 metre (3.3 ft) of snow has fallen since late December, the China Meteorological Administration said on its Web site.
Snow has blanketed the eastern province of Shandong too, cutting off roads and grounding aircraft, as China chills in what the China Daily said this week was the coldest winter in 20 years, though Beijing has yet to experience significant snow fall.
Summer temperatures in 2005 were also the highest since 1951, and the eight typhoons that made landfall in China last year were the highest number since 1949, the newspaper added.
China was beset by droughts, floods, typhoons and blizzards in 2005 which caused the highest level of economic losses in five years and killed almost 2,500 people, the government said this week.
With some 15.7 million people left homeless by disasters last year, the government said it welcomed donations from companies and private individuals to supplement official aid efforts.
REUTERS NEWS SERVICE
