BEIJING (Reuters) – The Chinese capital Beijing woke up on Sunday morning, shrouded in thick dust with extremely high levels of dangerous particles, when a second sandstorm hit the city in two weeks as a result of drought-stricken Mongolia and northwest China.
Visibility in the city was reduced, with the tops of some skyscrapers obscured by the sandstorm, and pedestrians forced to cover their eyes as clouds of dust poured through the streets.
‘It’s pretty serious today. There is always one or two of these days every month (of pollution or dust), ”said Mr Fan, 39, who would not reveal his full name.
Beijing’s official air quality index hit a maximum of 500 on Sunday morning, with particulate matter known as PM10 exceeding 2,000 micrograms per cubic meter in some districts.
The measurements of smaller PM2.5 particles were more than 300 micrograms per cubic meter, much higher than the Chinese standard of 35 micrograms.
PM2.5 particles are especially harmful because they are very small and can enter the bloodstream, while PM10 is a larger particle that can enter the lungs.
China’s Meteorological Administration issued a yellow alert on Friday, warning that a sandstorm was spreading from Mongolia to northern China’s provinces, including Inner Mongolia, Shanxi, Liaoning and Hebei, which surround Beijing.
The meteorological service said the recent sandstorms that hit Beijing came from Mongolia, where the relatively warmer temperatures this spring and reduced rainfall resulted in larger areas of bare earth, creating favorable conditions for sandstorms.
Beijing could face more sandstorms in April due to adverse weather this year, the meteorological office said.
Reporting by Sophie Yu, Judy Hua and Martin Pollard; Editing by Michael Perry