Shenyang, Dalian Hit by Coldest Weather in 50 Years

Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province, and Dalian, a port city in the same province, have been reportedly hit by the coldest weather in 50 years.

The temperature in Shenyang fell to minus 30.9 degrees Celsius Monday, said local sources.

This temperature is second only to the record cold temperature of 33.1 degrees Celsius below zero in the winter of 1950, said the sources.

Snowfall in this major northeastern Chinese industrial city has also doubled this winter, which has forced the city's Taoxian International Airport to be closed several times, and has caused a drastic rise in the number of patients suffering from fractures at local hospitals, said the local sources.

In a related case, the average temperature in Dalian, also a popular summer seaside resort, dropped to minus 21 degrees Celsius, the lowest temperature record in the past 50 years.

Meteorological experts explained that this year's cold weather in the two cities is mainly caused by the active cold air mass from the North Pole.

The cold weather has helped drive up the sales of commodities such as down-padded clothing and boots in Dalian, said local sources.






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