Northern China Faces Severe Windstorm, Residents Urged to Stay Indoors

Sun Oct 19 2025 23:48:16 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

Beijing experiences its strongest April winds in 70 years, leading to uprooted trees and disruptions across various sectors.

A powerful windstorm has swept through Northern China, prompting Beijing officials to advise residents to remain indoors as winds are expected to peak at unprecedented levels for April. The storm has already uprooted trees and disrupted travel, leaving many evacuated as authorities implement safety measures.

Beijing's 22 million residents were urged to remain indoors on Saturday as fierce winds lashed northern China. Forecasters predicted that these winds could become the strongest April gusts Beijing has seen in 70 years, with estimates suggesting speeds of 83 to 92 miles per hour. The high winds were linked to a polar vortex originating from Mongolia, resulting in sudden temperature drops.

Heavy winds began affecting the region on Friday, toppling more than 400 trees and forcing nearly 7,000 residents to evacuate by Saturday morning, according to state media reports. Overnight, dust storms swept through the north, with the state broadcaster China Central Television reporting on the swirling conditions.

Yang Bobo, a finance postgraduate student in Beijing, described the nighttime winds as “wailing like ghosts and howling like wolves.” The winds even caused a glass door at her school to crash to the ground. “I didn’t go out last night since I value my life,” she stated on Saturday.

In central China’s Henan Province, powerful winds rattled windows and damaged utility poles. Videos circulating on the Chinese social media platform Weibo showed visual evidence of the weather's destruction. As a safety measure, city authorities in Beijing delayed nonessential travel and postponed several sporting events set for the weekend, including soccer matches and a marathon rescheduled for next week.

Transportation services, including trains and buses, faced significant disruptions as officials took precautionary steps on Friday and Saturday. China Southern Airlines reported the cancellation of 340 flights, further amplifying travel issues. With a sudden drop in temperatures from recent 80-degree days expected, the forecast indicated only 57 Fahrenheit was on the way.

Strong winds were also anticipated for nearby regions such as Shanxi, Hebei, and Inner Mongolia. Meteorological authorities in South Korea and Japan issued similar warnings for their western coasts, as the weather system over Mongolia laid the groundwork for the intense conditions affecting both countries.