Snowy weather affects traffic in SW China

The snowy weather that has battered southwest China's Yunnan province has affected traffic and temporarily shut down highways and airports, leaving passengers stranded.

The Kunming Changshui International Airport resumed operations at around 2:30 p.m. on Monday after it had been shut down due to icy conditions this morning, the airport's administration said. The airport canceled 259 flights on Sunday.

Snow and ice on the airport's two runways have been removed, according to the airport's administration.

The snow that hit Yunnan on Sunday stretched into Monday morning, affecting all 12 airports in the region.

At Dehong Mangshi Airport, a total of 11 flights have been canceled and four delayed, affecting more than 1,600 passengers.

All four flights at Pu'er airport have been canceled, and airports in Lijiang, Dali, Xishuangbanna, Tengchong, Diqing, Baoshan, Zhaotong, Wenshan and Lincang have been affected.

As of 4 p.m. Monday, all highways in the province had resumed traffic. More than 50 power networks have been restored while workers are still repairing other affected power lines.

More than 1,400 people trapped on a highway stretch in Heqing County , have been offered help, according to provincial authorities.

Heavy rain and snow also hit some other parts of south China.

A rainstorm hit Wanning City, Hainan Province from Friday night to Sunday, inundating urban areas and rural villages. More than 80,000 people were displaced. The weather caused economic losses of 1.5 billion yuan (245 million US dollars), but no casualties were reported.

The heavy rain, which hit Jiangxi Province from Saturday to Monday, alleviated the drought in the province.

The accumulated average precipitation reached 91 mm across Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region from Friday to Monday, three times the rainfall in the whole of December in previous years, said the regional meteorological station.

The station forecast icy weather from Wednesday to Friday in parts of the region, which may affect traffic and crops.