More snowfall is expected in the next two days in northern regions of China's Xingjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, which is expected to make relief work there even harder, chinanews.cn reported today.

The worst snow in northwestern Xinjiang in six decades had claimed 13 lives by Monday, according to the regional bureau of civil affairs.

The bureau said in a printed report to news outlets Monday that the blizzard and freezing temperatures that swept the northern part of Xinjiang, particularly the Altay and Tacheng areas, had left another 1,168 people ill and injured.

Nine people died in Altay, including one from cold and eight in avalanches, and four died in avalanches in Ili Kazak Autonomous Prefecture as of 10 am Monday, according to the report.

Nearly 1.4 million people were affected by the weather, including 161,856 people who have been evacuated.

The severe weather has also toppled 7,125 residential buildings and damaged another 21,856 homes and 8,911 animal pens and vegetable sheds. The report said 101,000 livestock were dead or injured, and that it was difficult for 3.7 million farm animals to find enough to eat.