The first cold front swept Pingtan county in eastern Fujian province on Feb 9, bringing heavy rain and a sharp temperature drop.

As of 8 pm Sunday, eight local weather stations recorded downpours, with 65mm of rain falling in Dong'ao village, 64mm in Zhonglou village and 63mm in Tancheng township.

The temperature plummeted to about 6 Celsius degrees on Monday, and is expected to drop further in the next two days.

In addition, Deng Yiqin, a meteorologist, said more cold fronts are expected next week and the cold temperatures will thus linger - probably until the Lantern Festival which falls on Feb 14.

The county was also hit by gales of up to force 10 (89-102 km/h), and the meteorological department has issued alerts concerning maritime operations and road safety.

Edited by Chen Zhilin and Niva Whyman