Heavy fog in Shanghai disrupted air and road transport on
Thursday morning, said local officials.
Four highways were closed entirely or partially due to the heavy
fog.
?
Over 20 flights at Pudong Airport and Hongqiao Airport were
postponed and one flight to Guangzhou was canceled after 6:00 AM.
The flights were resumed gradually when the fog faded, according to
the airport officials.
Boats on Yangtze River were canceled due to the reduced
visibility.
A passenger ship carrying 321 commuters from Zhejiang Province
to Shanghai finally made it to the city yesterday afternoon, 24
hours after it was expected to arrive at the Wusong Port.
The ship was delayed several times by heavy fog, which has been
causing havoc for boats operating along the Yangtze River this
week.
Maritime authorities told almost all ships running along the
river to drop anchor or immediately head to port at midnight on
Wednesday as fog greatly reduced visibility along the waterway.
Shipping was reopened for two hours for large ships early
Wednesday morning, but was shut down again when the fog got
heavier, according to Gong San, an officer with the Wusong Maritime
Safety Administration.
Many passenger vessels running between Shanghai's mainland and
neighboring provinces as well as three local islands have been
delayed over the past two days.
"Currently, we only allow some of the passenger vessels to
resume with their voyages when conditions improve to avoid holding
up passengers too long. However, safety is the first concern," said
Gong.
Boats running between downtown and Hengsha Island, which is near
the mouth of the Yangtze, were still suspended as of last night,
while boats running to two other nearby islands were allowed to
resume operations yesterday afternoon.
The ship that finally arrived in Shanghai yesterday after a
24-hour journey had to call for supplies yesterday morning after it
was forced to drop anchor seven kilometers from its destination.
Bottled water and food were delivered to the ship by speed boats,
according to Gong.
The vessel finally arrived at the Wusong Port around 2pm,
according to maritime officials.
Heavy fog had been disturbing shipping traffic along local
waterways near the mouth of the Yangtze River and thousands of
vessels, most of which are cargo ships, had been influenced every
day.
About 100 passengers aboard the passenger ship Dazhong for a
trip between downtown Shanghai and Chongming Island were forced to
spend the night on the river after serious fog led to similar
traffic restrictions on January 18.
(Xinhua News Agency, Shanghai Daily February 9,
2007)
