1st LD-Writethru: Snowstorms sweep across north China

Snowstorms swept across a vast area of north China on Sunday, disrupting traffic, grounding flights and slowing down bullet trains in Beijing, Tianjin and Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

Six highways passing through Beijing were closed. Beijing Railway Bureau said some trains along the Beijing-Guangzhou, Beijing-Shanghai and Beijing-Tianjin high-speed lines are running at a lower speed because of the snow.

In Beijing, thousands of people and hundreds of vehicles were sent out to clear the snow on roads. About 23,000 workers and 2,300 vehicles can be mobilized to clean the roads, authorities said.

At Beijing Capital International Airport, 150 flights have been canceled.

Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region issued an alert for snowstorms, calling for the maintenance of roads, railways and telecommunication facilities.

In Tianjin, all highways have been shut down and more than 20 flights have been delayed at Tianjin Binhai International Airport.

Bus companies in Tianjin said they added more vehicles to cope with the city's transportation needs.

China's meteorological authority on Sunday renewed a blue alert, the lowest level in a four-tier warning system, for snowstorms in the north of the country.

Snowstorms will hit Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and northern provinces of Shanxi and Hebei as well as Beijing and Tianjin municipalities on Sunday and Monday, with some areas expected to see snowfall of up to 12 millimeters, the National Meteorological Center said.

The center suggested affected areas take precautions as temperatures are expected to plunge.

In China's four-tier color-coded weather warning system, red represents the most severe weather, followed by orange, yellow and blue. Endi