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Beijing
CNN
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Snowstorms and freezing rain cause mass disruption during China's peak Lunar New Year travel rush, with drivers trapped in cars on icy highways and passengers struggling to rebook canceled trains and flights. are doing.
The harsh winter weather comes as Chinese tourists make an estimated 9 billion record trips during the infamous 40-day “Spring Lun” period, and millions of urban workers They are also known to brave crowded stations and heavy traffic to return to their hometowns for celebratory events. In this country, it is a spring festival.
As of Tuesday morning, 90 sections of major highways affected by snow and ice were closed across China, state-run Beijing News reported. Thousands of workers have been brought in to restore rail services and clear roads in hard-hit Hubei and neighboring Anhui provinces, where temperatures have fallen below freezing in recent days, state media said. reported.
Numerous videos and images circulating online show long stretches of cars stuck in snow on highways. Others showed crowds of passengers stuck at stations, in one case with an announcement blaring out: “We are not leaving today. The train is not leaving.” Please get your refund. ”
In central China, dozens of highways were closed across Hubei province over the weekend, and hundreds of flights were canceled and traffic in the transportation hub of Wuhan came to a standstill. More severe weather is expected in the region over the next few days.
With the end of strict anti-coronavirus measures that have severely restricted movement since 2020, this holiday season marks the first time in years that many people across China will be free to travel to celebrate with friends and family. Last year's holiday season had just happened. Weeks after those measures were lifted, just as a wave of infections occurred across the country, complicating travel.
Yang Guan/Visual China Group/Getty Images
A traveler drags his luggage through the snow at Lihe Railway Station in Henan province on February 2.
This year, bad weather warnings from authorities have not deterred many from leaving for their hometowns to celebrate the Year of the Dragon, which begins on February 10th.
Among those who decided to celebrate with their loved ones was Tang Zitao, a used car dealer from Hubei province. He was stuck in his car overnight on his way home.
Tan told CNN in an interview on Monday as he waited for snow-bound traffic to begin moving that the journey, which normally takes six hours, had already taken 24 hours.
“This journey is too long. It's torture,” Tan said. He came dressed in a down jacket and, unlike the people around him, came with plenty of food and water.
When Tan flipped the camera over, it showed snow piling up on both sides of the road and a long traffic jam. “It snowed since the day before yesterday. It melted a little, but quickly turned to ice. Therefore, the roads are very wet and slippery,” he said.
But Mr Tan remained optimistic. “No matter what, we always went home for the Spring Festival. It's a Chinese tradition,” he said.
Tan finally reached his destination at 2 a.m. Tuesday, he told CNN in an update.
Videos circulating on social media show people walking from car to car along icy roads and setting up roadside stations to provide food to stranded motorists. A person is seen handing out bottles of hot water on the highway.
“These are not for sale. They are free,” said one woman handing out porridge to stranded travelers along the highway.
Although train services in Wuhan have resumed in stages from Monday, 100 expressway toll plazas around Hubei province still have traffic restriction measures in place due to frozen roads, state media reported.
And the weather shows little sign of respite. According to CNN Weather, another wave of precipitation is expected into the middle of the week, slightly to the south of the snow over the weekend.
Chinese meteorological authorities warned on Tuesday that further heavy snowfall would continue in parts of Hubei province and south-central China until Wednesday afternoon.
