Classes were called off on Monday in Yantai and Weihai, two coastal cities in the eastern province of Shandong, as the weather station predicted a blizzard would hit the already snow-covered region in the coming three days.

Yantai Meteorological Bureau officials said the snowy weather, starting on December 3, has resulted in the heaviest snowfall in the city's history since 1961 when Yantai first had meteorological records.

Snowfall since December 3 had reached 52.9 mm, according to the bureau, and snow in some downtown areas had reached 0.5 meters.

The bureau has issued a "red" warning (its most severe) for a blizzard and another "red" warning for frozen road conditions.

The education authority cancelled classes in kindergartens, primary and middle schools for Monday, with resumption dependent on weather conditions.

In the nearby city of Weihai, classes were also off, the third time in the past week.

The meteorological bureau there said its snowfall in the past week was also the heaviest recorded, and they worried the coming blizzard would worsen the situation.

(Xinhua News Agency December 13, 2005)