The Chinese capital, Beijing, woke up Sunday morning covered in thick dust, which carries extremely high levels of dangerous particles as a second sandstorm struck the city in two weeks due to winds from drought-stricken Mongolia and northwestern China.
Visibility in the city deteriorated, the tops of some skyscrapers were hidden due to a sandstorm, and pedestrians had to close their eyes when dust gusts swept through the streets.
Beijing’s official air quality index reached a maximum of 500 on Sunday morning, and the number of floating particles known as PM10 in some areas exceeds 2,000 micrograms per cubic meter.
The readings of the smaller PM2.5 particles were above 300 micrograms per cubic meter, well above the Chinese standard of 35 micrograms.
PM2.5 particles are particularly harmful because they are very tiny and can enter the bloodstream, while PM10 particles are larger particles that can enter the lungs.
On Friday, the Chinese Meteorological Administration issued a yellow warning that a sandstorm had spread from Mongolia to China’s northern provinces, including Inner Mongolia, Shanxi, Liaoning and Hebei, which surround Beijing.
The Meteorological Administration said recent sandstorms in Beijing came from Mongolia, where relatively high temperatures this spring and declining rains led to large areas of bare land, creating favorable conditions for sandstorms.
According to the meteorological bureau, in April, Beijing may face new sandstorms due to bad weather.