Smog to blanket China, schools to suspend outdoor activities

BEIJING: Heavy smog today returned to blanket China partially as it is expected to cause high-level air pollution in coming days, forcing schools to suspend outdoor activities.

Medium to heavy smog will hit parts of Beijing-Tianjin- Hebei on Tuesday and Wednesday, though it would not be as severe as the air pollution earlier this week, the National Meteorological Centre (NMC) said.

All elementary and middle schools here will have to suspend outdoor activities as the city issued another orange alert for smog next week.

Elementary and middle schools, kindergartens and extracurricular training schools should suspend their outdoors activities during the alert from tomorrow until Wednesday in view of the smog alert, the city's Commission of Education said today.

The recent smog which dissipated on Tuesday prompted the Beijing municipal government to issue its first orange alert, the second-highest level, which means construction sites must stop dust-raising activities while the elderly and the children are advised to stay indoors.