Weather forecasters are warning of disruption to transport and
other problems with the sandstorm season beginning two months
earlier in southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region.
Lhasa, the regional capital, was cloaked in dust on Sunday
afternoon. Winds gusting up to 79 kilometers per hour swept up
debris and even blew over a ten-meter tree.
Flights were cancelled or postponed, leaving about 400
passengers stranded in the airport.
"Dust storms hit Lhasa every year, but normally not until
March," said Zhoema, who has been living in the city for over 30
years. "It is rare to see such a strong dust storm in January."
Experts said the sand mainly came from the Lhasa River to the
south of the city. They believed that this winter's very low
rainfall, only 0.1 mm, and high temperatures were to blame for the
weather.
The weather in Lhasa improved on Tuesday, but experts did not
rule out the possibility of more dust storms with more high winds
expected on Wednesday.
The first dust storm of the year hit Lhasa on Jan.10, according
to the regional meteorological station.
A daytime temperature of 20.4 degrees Celsius was recorded in
Lhasa at the beginning of this month, just a tenth of a degree
below the record high set in 2001, said Yu Zhongshui from the
meteorological station.
Lhasa is one of the Chinese cities that have the best air
quality, reporting 363 days of good air quality from December 2005
to October 2006.
(Xinhua News Agency January 23, 2007)
