The sky above Beijing has turned yellow and air pollution has risen to severe levels, while a huge cloud of sand and dust particles has rolled into the city, propelled by strong winds from northern China.
Beijing’s air quality index rose to 324 from 16:00 local time (08:00 GMT) on Thursday, mainly due to larger particles of sand and dust, city officials said.
It worsened in the evening, exceeding 1,300 in some parts of the city, according to the Swiss application IQAir.
The particles come from Mongolia and the Chinese region of Inner Mongolia, and strong winds are expected to transport pollutants to central and eastern China by Friday, the China Meteorological Administration said.
The amount of sand in the air was lower than during two sandstorms in northern China last month, but the wind speed was higher, allowing dusty weather to move faster and further, according to the weather administration.
“I’m not feeling well. I’ve had several dust storms this year,” said Gary Zi, a 48-year-old Beijing resident who works in the financial sector.
“The (air) quality is much worse than in previous years,” he added. “Breathing becomes difficult. The sand enters your eyes and nose.”
China usually blames the Gobi Desert of Mongolia for its annual sandstorms.
Delegates from China’s arid Gansu region said in a proposal to parliament last month that more than half of the dust storms that fall in China each year come from abroad, mainly from southern Mongolia.
Beijing has planted millions of trees along its border to block sandstorms, part of a project known as the “Great Green Wall.”
“I feel like it’s all about climate change,” said another Beijing resident as he dusted off his motorcycle near the China World Trade Center, giving only his last name, Xie. “(We) can’t do much about it.”
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