National weather forecasters also said yesterday that the freeze will linger for the next couple of days in most regions from the northeasternmost Heilongjiang Province to the southwesternmost Tibet Autonomous Region.

The Central Meteorological Observatory yesterday also said snow and sleet will blanket most of Northeast China's Heilongjiang, Jilin and Liaoning provinces, North China's Shanxi Province, and most of Northwest China.

The cold is the work of two massive cold fronts from the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

Hospitals in Beijing reported growing numbers of flu patients yesterday, as well as patients with respiratory illnesses such as asthma as well as intestinal and stomach diseases.

"We did receive more patients with the flu or those asking for flu vaccinations today, although the increase is still moderate," said an unnamed doctor at Chaoyang Hospital, one of the major clinics in Beijing.

A medical consultant at Jinsong Hospital in Beijing, who would not give his name, said there was an increase in flu patients there as well.

The hospital has a bulletin in its lobby urging people to get flu vaccinations, he said.

November is typically the high season for the flu, experts said.

People have also rushed to buy coats, scarves and other accessories to ward off the cold.

With the start of the city's steam heating service still half month away, many people in Beijing have turned on their air-conditioners, which can also generate heat, and other forms of heaters to keep warm.

( China Daily October 22, 2002 )