The strongest March snowstorm to hit Liaoning Province in 56
years cut the power and water supply in many parts of the port city
of Dalian on Sunday night, local power supply authorities said.
"Restore work is expected to begin on Monday afternoon when the
strong winds should weaken to below force seven," said Ma Yong'an,
the spokesman of Dalian Supply Company.
"But we are not entirely sure when the work can be done," he
added.
A gust measured at force 11 caused the blackout of 11 of the 25
220-kv power supply stations in the city at 10:00 PM on Sunday,
said Zhao Weijun, deputy chief engineer of the company.
Power supply to the suburban Lushunkou District, Jinzhou
District, Wafangdian City, and parts of the eastern and western
urban areas, was cut off. The power failure, in turn, caused the
water and gas supply in the urban areas to also be disrupted, said
Zhao.
A total of 204 ships anchored at Dalian port have been
prohibited from leaving, said Ma Zhenhua, a staff member in the
city's emergency management office. In addition, most of the
flights at the Dalian Zhoushuizi international airport had been
cancelled as of Sunday.
Since Saturday night, rain and snow have fallen continually in
most parts of Liaoning Province, with reported
precipitations of 56 millimeters in Dalian, 36 mm in Shenyang,
capital of Liaoning, and 68 mm in Dandong, according to the
Shenyang Meteorological Observatory.
Strong winds amid heavy snow have left at least one person dead
and seven injured after the roof of a farm produce market
collapsed, local sources said.
Most vehicles in Shenyang are forbidden to be on the roads on
Monday, except those for public use, to ensure the smooth cleanup
and transportation of snow, which has caused major traffic
troubles.
The central meteorological observatory forecast that snow and
rainfall would continue to hit most parts of north China in the
next two days, disrupting air and highway travel in these
areas.
(Xinhua News Agency March 5, 2007)
