Heavy fog hits northern and eastern China

Thick fog and smog have settled over North China early this week. Dense fog has enveloped Shandong and Hebei provinces in northern China, and Anhui, Zhejiang, and Fujian provinces in the east. Traffic has been crippled on expressways, and hundreds of flights have been canceled, Xinhua News said on Tuesday. In some areas, visibility has been reduced to less than 200 meters.

By Monday afternoon, local time, more than 200 flights through Beijing Capital International Airport had been canceled. Moreover, the return of thick fog Tuesday night led airport operators to scrub all outbound flights by domestic carriers, Xinhua said. Traffic tie-ups were squeezing vegetable supplies, as some expressways leading from production centers in Shandong province were closed.

Winter fog and city smog are yearly occurrences in North China, being brought on by weak solar heating and temperature inversions. China’s meteorological office says a strong cold front is now expected to reach central and eastern China by Wednesday, which should help clear the fog. An increase in dry northwesterly winds beginning on Wednesday could put an to the widespread fog problems, forecasters at AccuWeather.com believe.