Changsha pit transformed into a park

CHANGSHA－A newly opened amusement park in Changsha, the capital of Central China's Hunan province, has become a hot topic among residents.

The park opened on July 11, but people had been snapping up tickets since the end of June. Visitors to the park have also included the stars and production crews of several popular entertainment programs.

"We can play in the water and snow here in the hot summer. It's a great place to relax and have parties," said Wu Shu, who visited the park with her friends.

Another reason the park, dubbed the "kingdom of ice and snow on a mine", has gone viral is that it was built above an abandoned pit more than 100 meters deep in the city's Pingtang subdistrict as part of efforts to restore the environment and boost urban development.

Pingtang, on the outskirts of Changsha, was home to a cluster of more than 30 construction material and chemical factories in the 1950s that caused serious pollution.

"The sky was gray and dusty at that time. People who lived around here hardly opened the windows. Our windowsills, even the leaves on the trees, were enveloped by dust," said 54-year-old Pingtang resident Xie Yiqiang.