Beijing: A cold snap has enveloped most of China and Korea, bringing in record snow showers in decades, forcing schools to down shutters, massive traffic snarls and grounding flights at all major airports in the countries.
China's capital reported the heaviest daily snowfall in nearly six decades with ten millimetres recorded, the largest amount in one day since 1951, with the weathermen warning that more freezing weather was on the way.
A Siberian cold front plunged minimum temperatures between minus 20 and minus 32 degree Celsius in Heibei province and inner Mongolia. The freeze was however the worst in southwestern Heilongiang where temperatures dipped to all time low of minus 36 degree Celsius, Xinhua new agency reported.
More than 1200 flights from Beijing airport were cancelled or delayed as authorities pushed in thousands of workers to clear the runway and tarmac.
In the South Korean capital, Seoul, it has been snowing continuously for the past two days with 26 centimetres accumulation reported, the heaviest recorded so far.
Massive delays were reported at both Gimpo and Incheon international airport. Massive traffic jams were reported in the city centre.
Xinhua said snow showers had led to more than 3,500 schools in Beijing and Tianjin to shut their doors, giving more than 2.2 million students an extra day off in new year's holiday.
All highways leading to Beijing were closed by a thick blanket of snow with more than 5,000 volunteers deployed to clear these block roads.
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