The national weather observatory in China on Sunday renewed its orange alert as the cold front continually sweeps the country with snow in some regions for the first time in years.

The National Meteorological Center (NMC) raised its weather warning level from yellow to orange on Saturday, Jan. 23. On Sunday morning, areas in the northwestern and northern parts between the Yellow River and Huaihe River suffered from a decrease of temperature between 10 and 13 degrees Celcius, according to the NMC. It further added that the temperature in the lower and middle reaches of the Yangtze River could significantly drop as low as negative 12 degrees Celcius between Sunday and Monday.

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Meanwhile, other regions including Zhejiang, Fujian and Guangdong are also predicted to see a drop in temperature equal or lower than previously recorded. Central and eastern parts of China will also see historic temperature drop by 6 to 8 degrees.

On Saturday, all areas north of the Yangtze River experienced a below zero degrees Celcius drop, except Sichuan Province and Chongqing.

Beijing's maximum load in its power grid system has already set a record at 16.96 million kilowatts, while Shanghai hit a record winter high of 23.83 million kilowatts on Tuesday, expected to increase to 24 million kilowatts over the weekend.

The Beijing Electric Power Corporation has prepared more than 450 emergency repair vehicles and generator wagon. Beijing and Tianjin as well as Hebei Province have already requested heating supply companies to increase heat temperature and combat the freezing weather. Shanghai, on the other hand, has also lined up over 3000 electricians to respond in case of power supply problems.

Tagschina, winter, cold season, weather update, National Meteorological Center