China on orange alert for blizzards

China on Sunday continued to warn against blizzards, hiking the alert to the second-highest level on snowstorms that are expected to hit northern regions over the next few days.

On Sunday and Monday, heavy snow will hit central and eastern parts of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, northern and western parts of Hebei Province, and most parts of Beijing, with some regions seeing snowstorms reaching 30 mm, the National Meteorological Center (NMC) said.

The center at 6 a.m. issued an orange alert following a blue alert on Saturday, the weakest on China's four-tier color-coded warning system for blizzards.

Meanwhile, rain, sleet and snow are forecast to fall in most parts of north China, regions along the Yellow and Huaihe rivers, and some parts of northeast China from Sunday to Tuesday.

The center also issued a blue alert on a cold snap in east China, which is expected to bring gales and drop temperatures by 6 to 8 degree Celsius in Inner Mongolia's east and most eastern costal areas over the coming two days.