Damage The snowstorm caused extensive damage to many low-rise buildings, the roofs of which collapsed, killing occupants inside. It was estimated that about 223,000 homes were destroyed and 862,000 others were damaged. CNN also reported that a 500 meter-long auto plant in
Xiangtan had its entire roof collapse. The power system of China was also severely affected by adverse conditions. Widespread power outages were reported. In
Chenzhou, which has a population of 4.6 million, it was reported that the entire city had no power or water for nearly two weeks, including government buildings and hospitals, while telecommunications cables and Internet networks were also damaged. In
Fuzhou, Jiangxi, it was reported that the city lost power for about 3 weeks. The snowstorm also damaged water supply equipment. For instance, in
Wuhan, up to 100,000 people were out of running water when several water pipes burst, cutting the supply to local households. In the
Guangxi region, about 239,000 were also having problems accessing drinking water. Moreover, during the first week, there were significant mandatory evacuations, and an estimated 827,000 people were evacuated across fourteen provinces, affecting a total population of about 78 million. Over two weeks, according to Xinhua, 1.8 million residents were relocated elsewhere. In addition, 870,000
pigs, 450,000
sheep, and 85,000 head of cattle were killed by the storm. The freak storms were especially painful because they hit warmer parts of China that have little experience with snow. Many communities lacked the necessary equipment to handle the heavy snowfall.
Transportation Transportation was also heavily affected as the storms hit during the busiest travelling season of the year,
Chunyun, preceding the
Lunar New Year. Nearly 180 million people travel throughout the country during the holiday. According to Xinhua, in early February, millions of Chinese were travelling from the major cities to the countryside to celebrate the Spring Festival, a traditional celebration where the Chinese people return to their families, which fell on 7 February that year. Backlogs at that station where people were waiting desperately to return home lasted several days. Many travelers took refuge in an emergency shelter at the China Import and Export Fair exhibition center where at times the mass of people was about the size of three to four entire football fields. Goods were distributed to stranded travelers, including free water bottles and lunch boxes of rice, chicken legs, and cabbages sold at about a dollar each. Red banners were installed at one station encouraging some travelers to abandon their travel plans, and nearly half a million cancelled their trips after lengthy waits. Xinhua reported that 11 million migrant workers in the Guangdong area received ticket refunds. Most of the rail service resumed on 31 January, but heavy fog on 3 February caused further delays, particularly in Hunan. The lengthy delays occasionally caused clashes between travelers, police, and soldiers.
Highway Several main highways including in
Shanxi and Henan as well as
Jingzhu Expressway, the main highway connecting the capital Beijing and Guangdong province, were shut down. Seven of the eight highways connecting Hunan and Guangdong were closed, and all public highways in Anhui were closed. The road closures disrupted the transportation of goods across several areas of the country where there were concerns of significant food shortage as the storm also did significant damage to crops.
Water transport Province
Water transportation was also affected as 10 boats at the Shanghai port which contained goods were stuck and unable to unload because of the snow.
Airport About 60,000 bus riders were stranded on various highways, and 19 major airports in 10 cities were also closed at one point. 10,000 at
Baiyun Airport in Guangzhou were stranded after 55 flights were cancelled. In total, about 3,250 flights were cancelled and another 5,550 were delayed.
Fatalities According to
CNN, 63 were killed as of 31 January due to the effects of the storm, Another crash on 28 January killed at least 25 when a bus plunged into an icy road near
Zunyi City. Three electricians were killed in Hunan while attempting to remove snow and ice from power lines and were named "revolutionary martyrs" by the government. As there was a gradual restoration of train services, stampedes killed at least one person in Guangzhou. 11 electricians were also killed while restoring power across the country, but it wasn't clear if they were included in the official death toll of 60 people killed in accidents and building collapses blamed on the storms.
Economic impact and costs on 28 January 2008 The Chinese economy, which has experienced rapid growth over the past thirty years, was also affected by the winter event. According to the
BBC, the country's civil affairs ministry estimated that the costs to the
country's economy were about 54 billion
Chinese yuan but the cost rose to 80 billion yuan as of February 7. Damage estimates as of February 13 were at about 111 billion yuan. Insurance companies across the country received tens of thousands of compensation cases including half a million from the hardest-hit regions. In addition, productivity at numerous factories was affected. Among them, steel and aluminum production was scaled back due to a significant shortage of raw materials, and a loss of production of about 50,000 tonnes of lead and zinc was forecasted in Hunan. Telecom companies had significant repair costs as about 10,000 kilometers of lines were affected. The Ministry of Information Industry mentioned that this has affected 33 million users and cost at least 80 million yuan up until 27 January. Other sectors affected were hotels, airlines, and auto sales while other businesses had a disruption in the supply of products because of transportation delays. The Chinese government mentioned that the storm would not have a significant long-term effect on the general economy but would not be without significant short-term problems. The winter weather may have been responsible for a 7% drop in the
Shanghai Composite Index due to concerns about the effects of transport breakdowns and power shortages. However, the storms happened at the same time as significant
worldwide stock market volatility was occurring due to concerns of a
recession in the
United States. Energy-related stocks rose as much as 23% due to the rise in profits because of the weather woes. He mentioned that the electrical system would be the first to be fixed before restoring normal train operations for Lunar New Year holiday travelers. The severe weather also led to an emergency meeting of the
Politburo Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, chaired by
General Secretary Hu Jintao, to discuss ways in order to control the situation. In addition, the government spent over 330 million yuan for local disaster relief operations. There were also reports that China would invest significantly in better forecasting and cooperation between weather departments in the event of future storms as there were reports of criticism of the weather agencies. According to the
China Meteorological Administration, there are plans to invest nearly 2 billion yuan (US$300 million) for the improvement of the weather forecasting work, which was reportedly approved by the State Council. In addition, several weather experts from the meteorological office said that the country was not properly prepared to face a winter weather event of this magnitude. Some had praised northern parts of the country for their emergency plans in unusual weather. but have criticized those from the southern parts. The Chinese Meteorological Administration also added that officials were not expecting such a lengthy episode of severe winter weather with an extensive impact across a large area. ==Foreign and interior aid==