A traffic jam caused by persistent icy weather has stranded thousands of vehicles, stretching dozens of kilometers on a state road in southwest China's Yunnan Province, police said Saturday.

On a section of a state road between Zhaoyao District and Daguan County of Zhaotong City, police officers have been working non-stop since morning trying to get the traffic moving again.

Icy weather since New Year's Day have disrupted roads in many southern and central China provinces. The transport departments in those provinces have spread salt to de-ice roads along with sand to prevent cars from sliding.

The freakish weather also forced the evacuation of at least 58,000 people from their homes over the past week, according to the Ministry of Civil Affairs.

The hardest hit areas have been Guizhou and Hunan, which will continue to experience freezing temperatures over the next three days, the National Meteorological Center reported Saturday.