Sunday saw snow cover the metropolis of Shanghai in eastern coastal China, an unusual sight following what the local meteorological station said had been more than ten years of warm winters.

 Snow began falling at 10 a.m. on the northern Chongming Island and had covered the whole city area by noon.

The snow fell four days before the Spring Festival, the Chinese Lunar New Year, which well decorated the city and created a festive atmosphere, said the citizens.

They said in recent years the snowfall always lasted at most an hour, once even only 10 minutes.

Traffic was slowed down in the downtown area, bringing troubles to people who were traveling home with lots of luggage.

But the moderate snow was unlikely to stay on the ground because the temperature is around -1 to 5 degrees Celsius these days, said Dai Xinfu, expert with the weather forecast center of Shanghai.

The snowfall was forecast to stop Sunday night.

(Xinhua News Agency January 19, 2004)