Beijing issues blue alert for cold wave

BEIJING, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- Beijing released a blue alert for cold wave on Thursday afternoon as the city is expected to embrace a cold wave from Friday to Sunday, with the lowest temperature dropping by over 10 degrees Celsius, according to the municipal meteorological service.

Zhai Liang, chief forecaster of the municipal meteorological service, said that due to the influence of cold air, Beijing will experience rain, strong winds and significant temperature drops from Thursday to Sunday. The city's mountainous areas with high altitude are likely to see sleet.

Starting from Friday night, temperatures in Beijing will decrease by 8 to 10 degrees Celsius. It is forecast that on Sunday, the maximum temperature during the daytime will fall to around 10 degrees Celsius, while the minimum temperature at night will drop to about 3 degrees Celsius, and in mountainous areas, the minimum temperature will fall below 0 degree Celsius.

The city's temperatures will rise slowly starting from Oct. 21, Zhai added.