China calls in troops to deal with blizzard chaos

China put nearly half a million soldiers to work clearing roads today as the country struggled to cope with winter storms that have brought it to a virtual standstill.

The worst blizzards in 50 years have struck much of central and eastern China for more than two weeks, causing dozens of deaths, collapsing buildings and forcing the closure of highways and airports.

Electricity shortages hit the country’s centre as snow and ice pulled down power lines.

Hundreds of thousands of travellers have been stranded at stations after electric trains were stopped, leaving them unable to return home for the Lunar New Year holiday – the only time most migrant workers get to see their families.

For the second day running, Premier Wen Jiabao visited affected regions to display high-level government and Communist Party concern.

“This has been very hard on everyone,” he said to some of the hundreds of thousands who have been sleeping outdoors while waiting to board trains.

“Currently all levels of government are working on getting electricity restored. After that, transport will resume,” he told the crowd.

Despite the all-out effort, power has been slow to come back on amid continuing bad weather.

Lorries remained stuck on China’s north-south roads and much of the rail network is affected, prompting orders to ensure deliveries of food and fuel, especially coal to fire power plants.

In Guangzhou, fights broke out among travellers seeking to board buses to the train station. Police intervened in at least one case as passengers clawed their way onto a bus not even going to the station.

The streak of bad weather hit as tens of millions of Chinese were on the move for the holiday, one of the world’s biggest annual mass movements of humanity, which this year begins on February 7.

Before the storms, railway officials estimated a record 178.6 million people – more than the population of Russia - would travel by train for the holiday.

The official Southern Daily newspaper in Guangdong’s capital of Guangzhou said so far 470,000 people had given up hope of getting home and got refunds for their tickets. It said 200,000 were still spread out in temporary shelters away from the main Guangzhou station.

The problems are likely to continue as the China Meteorological Administration forecast more snow for at least the next three days in parts of eastern and southern China.

The provinces of Guizhou, Jiangsu and Shandong have recorded their biggest snowfalls in 50 years, while others such as Hunan and Shaanxi saw the most snow in 20 years.