A CITYWIDE district-based weather forecast service was launched Wednesday in Shenzhen, Thursday’s Southern Metropolis Daily reported.
Shenzhen residents can now receive weather forecasts relevant to their own districts via TV or text messages, the Daily report said. Individual warnings for typhoons and severe thunderstorms will be issued in each district, marking a first for a mainland city.
At a ceremony unveiling the service Wednesday, Vice Mayor Lu Ruifeng took out his mobile phone after hearing a message tone and displayed the following text message to other attendees: “Congratulations on the launch of the district-specific weather forecasts.”
Shenzhen’s unique geographical location makes the city’s discrepancies in weather patterns extremely marked, the Daily report said. A warning signal issued for the city may not apply to all districts, according to the report.
Official statistics show that the amounts of annual rainfall in different areas differ by as much as 1,000 millimeters.
For the time being, district-specific warnings issued by the local observatory will be focused on typhoons and rainstorms which occur more frequently and vary the most from region to region, said Huang Jingji, head of the local observatory. With the improvement in detection techniques and warning capabilities, forecasts of thunderstorms, hail, thick fog, strong wind, high temperature, freezing cold, drought and haze will also be included.
Officials with the observatory announced at Wednesday’s meeting that for the time being, classes will be suspended at all primary and secondary schools across the city even if a warning is issued in just one district. “Some students live in one district and go to school in another district,” the officials explained. “We made the decision after consulting with the municipal education bureau.” (SD News)