Snow and rain will continue to fall in most parts of China for the next 10 days, providing much-needed water in the dried-out North, the National Meteorological Center (NMC) said yesterday.
Snow and rain hit central and eastern regions yesterday, and more is expected today in Tibet, Sichuan, Gansu, Shanxi, Shaanxi and Inner Mongolia, it said.
Heavy snow and possibly storms could hit Liaoning and Jilin provinces today, it said.
Light rain will fall in areas near the Yangtze River in southern China and Taiwan, it said.
Lin Jian, the NMC's chief forecaster, said: "The snow and rain will help alleviate the effects of the drought in the North.
"We have had no less rain this month than in previous years."
Areas that border the Bohai Sea, Yellow Sea and the East China Sea could experience gales, according to NMC.
Winds of up to force 4 to 6 will hit parts of Inner Mongolia, North China, central and eastern reaches of Yellow River, and the eastern and southern reaches of the Yangtze River.
The wet weather over the past two days has caused transport problems in some provinces.
In Hebei, all outbound highways were closed yesterday after heavy snow fell overnight.
The provincial highway traffic police center said all highways passing through Hebei to Beijing had to be closed.
Twelve highways, including the one linking Beijing and Shenyang, capital of Liaoning province, have been closed since yesterday morning because of heavy snow, the provincial transport department said.
Hebei got its first heavy snows of the year on Wednesday. The provincial weather bureau said the snow had been worsened by artificial seeding.
"The snow will help ease the drought," Guo Yingchun, from the meteorological observatory, said.
She said 313 cigarette-sized sticks of silver iodide were seeded into clouds between Wednesday night and yesterday morning, and this caused the heavy snowfall.
Shenyang Taoxian International Airport was closed from 10:15 am to 11 am and a flight to Beijing was delayed, a spokesman for the airport said.
Also, all services from Shenyang's main bus terminal were suspended yesterday.
In Lanzhou, capital of Gansu province, the snow and rain were accompanied by dust and sandstorms.
In most parts of the province, temperatures will fall by 6 to 10 degrees over the next two days, local forecasters said yesterday.
Authorities in Shanxi issued a warning to drivers about icy road conditions after heavy snow fell on Wednesday night. Several major highways were forced to close.
