A catastrophic blizzard enveloped Altay Prefecture of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region over the past couple of days.

Snow in the region recorded a thickness of 30 cm as of Thursday.

Two blizzards hit the region since Dec. 29 last year, leaving herdsmen and their livestock being stranded on winter pastures of Altay, which is densely populated by Muslims. The lowest temperature dropped to 39 degrees Celsius below zero on Thursday.

The regional government has issued relief funds and materials to help victims tide over the blizzard. The exact number of affected people is not available now.

(Xinhua News Agency January 27, 2006)