Fresh snow has blanketed the northeastern regions of China and 96 percent of Liaoning, one of the four provinces in the northeast, is covered by snow, the Central Meteorological Station (CMS) said Wednesday.

 

Seventy-five percent of Jilin province and 85 percent of Heilongjiang province are covered while most of central and eastern Inner Mongolia are under snow, according to the CMS.

 

Affected by strong cold air, temperatures around the Yellow River in Inner-Mongolia have dropped sharply, in some parts down to minus 10 degrees Celsius, the CMS said.

 

"Due to the freezing weather, the Yellow River is thawing at a slower rate and the water flow has reduced, which will lower the flood risk," said an expert.

 

Temperatures differ sharply along the zigzagging Yellow River, allowing high flows to break the banks when they hit frozen areas.

 

(Xinhua News Agency March 8, 2007)