The meteorological bureau of central China's Hunan Province
warned on Friday that more heavy snow and black ice had increased
the risk of road travel.
Snow fell in 13 counties and cities, including Jishou, Changde,
Yiyang, Yueyang and Chenzhou, on Thursday night and Friday morning.
Ningxiang county got the biggest dump at 16 millimeters.
The cold spell continued to wreak havoc in most parts of the
province. In Changning County, ice on power cables was six cm
thick.
The Hunan section of the Beijing-Zhuhai Expressway, the
country's key north-south trunk road, has been paralyzed by black
ice, leaving tens of thousands of vehicles and people stranded for
days in the cold winter.
The bureau said the temperature on all the province's highways
was below freezing, and warned traffic delays could get worse.
Meanwhile, a section of the Beijing-Zhuhai Expressway in
northern Guangdong Province has been closed because of surface ice
since Thursday night, despite continuous de-icing efforts by local
authorities.
About 9,000 people and 2,800 vehicles were currently stranded in
the section.
The Guangdong Provincial Price Bureau also imposed a ban on
profiteering by hotels and inns along the expressway starting from
today. The hotels and inns were told not to charge customers at
prices higher than those before Jan. 23, or they would face "severe
punishment".
The bureau said they would annul the price ban when the disaster
was over.
Unusual cold, heavy snow, sleet and icy rain have combined to
hit 17 provinces and regions in central and southern China in the
past two weeks, affecting the lives of millions.
The Ministry of Civil Affairs said on Wednesday that 38 had been
killed by collapsed roofs, slips and drowning since Jan. 10.
Dozens of others had died in snow-related traffic accidents,
according to reports from various provinces.
(Xinhua News Agency February 1, 2008)