More than 12,000 air passengers faced delays involving 408 flights, and road traffic was disrupted, as a heavy fog continued to shroud Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province, on Wednesday.

Visibility at Shuangliu International Airport fell to less than 50 meters, far below the 550 m and 800 m required for planes to take off and land, respectively.

Lu Shaoming, an airport executive, said the fog forced the facility to close for more than eight hours between 2 a.m. and 10:53 a.m.

"I am really eager to go home but there is nothing I can do but wait because of the fog," said a stranded passenger.

It was the ninth time heavy fog had disrupted flights to and from Chengdu since December.

In addition, all the expressways in Sichuan were closed by the fog.

In Chengdu city proper, traffic moved at a snail's pace on congested roads.

"I have to move slowly on the expressway and dare not to drive my car back to the city, where the fog is even heavier," said a driver stuck on the Chengdu-Guangyuan Expressway.

(Xinhua News Agency January 9, 2008)