Central and eastern China are battling a winter whiteout this week as heavy snowfall and freezing rain disrupt travel during the world's largest annual human migration 🌨️🚆. With over 300 million trips expected during the Spring Festival travel rush, authorities are scrambling to keep roads and railways open.
Orange Alert: Where Winter Hits Hardest
The National Meteorological Center renewed its orange alert – China's second-highest weather warning – for Henan, Anhui, Jiangsu, and Shandong provinces. In Hubei's capital Wuhan, a key transport hub, freezing rain has turned highways into ice rinks and delayed hundreds of trains 🚄❄️.
Travelers Turned TikTok Stars
『My high-speed train became a snail-express,』 joked Li Wei, 24, sharing her 12-hour delay experience on social media. Viral videos show railway staff serving free hot meals to stranded passengers – a silver lining in the frosty chaos 🍜❤️.
Why This Matters
This weather clash comes during Chunyun, the 40-day travel period where migrant workers and students flood home for Lunar New Year reunions 🧧. Despite the challenges, authorities have mobilized snowplows and extra staff across affected regions, proving that not even 'Frozen' levels of snow can stop the power of family ties ❄️👨👩👧👦.
