2010-03-31 16:13

BEIJING - Residents of Xilingol League in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region were again forced to wear glasses and face masks as sandstorms hit the area Wednesday.

Some ladies donned plastic bags to maintain their hairstyles as the strong winds blew yellow sand across the area. Visibility had dropped to less than 100 meters by 9 a.m.

The sandstorm was the third to hit the area, located 600 km from Beijing, since March 11.

Sandstorms frequently affect the area as most of the Xilingol grasslands have been damaged by population growth and over-grazing.

Rising temperatures that melted ice in the soil and created dusty conditions after a severe winter have been blamed for this year's frequent sandstorms.

Inner Mongolia and other parts of China will see more sand and dust in the air over the next 10 days, said Zheng Jiangping, a disaster-relief official with the China Meteorological Administration (CMA).

China suffered six sandstorms in March, with the worst affecting 21 provinces and regions from March 19 to 21.