Heavy fog has stranded more than 300 vessels in Shanghai since Sunday morning, the local maritime authority said.

Visibility was reduced to 1,000 meters, and 500 meters in some worse-hit places, near the Yangtze River Estuary early Sunday morning, said a spokesman with the maritime affairs office in Wusong District.

The fog forced the suspension of the ferry service between the city's downtown area and the Chongming Island.

Around noon, the ferry service resumed. As of 4 p.m., more than 300 ships had been stranded in the estuary area.

The Shanghai Port has been plagued by a prolonged foggy spell. Thanks to Saturday's good weather, more than 1,000 vessels, stranded in the past few days, had sailed.

(Xinhua News Agency February 9, 2009)