China renews orange alert for strong gales

China's meteorological authority renewed an orange alert on Friday evening for strong gales that will sweep across the northern regions and coastal areas over the weekend.

The National Meteorological Center said in an updated forecast that from 8pm Friday to 8pm Saturday, winds of up to force 13 (37.0-41.4 m/s) on the national wind scale will hit parts of Inner Mongolia, Shanxi, Hebei, and Beijing.

Gales up to force 12 will affect some areas, including the Bohai Sea and the Yellow Sea, the NMC said.

Additionally, a yellow alert for snowstorms was also issued, warning that parts of Inner Mongolia and Heilongjiang will experience snowfall ranging from 20 to 28 millimeters.

The NMC further renewed a blue alert for rainstorms that will affect regions including parts of Hubei, Anhui, Jiangsu, Shanghai, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Hunan, Guizhou, Guangxi, Guangdong, Fujian, and Liaoning.

The center also continued to issue a blue alert for sandstorms that will hit Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang, Gansu, and Ningxia.

The NMC advised the public in affected regions to take full precautions.

China has a four-tier weather warning system, with red representing the most severe warning, followed by orange, yellow, and blue.