Photo courtesy of the police

Taipei, Feb.4 (CNA) As an unusually cold air mass arrived in Taiwan over the weekend, people flocked to mountains to catch a glimpse of the rare sight of snow, while police were deployed to control traffic and assist the vehicles struck in the snow.

Under the influence of a strong cold air mass, Taiping Mountain in Yilan County, Jade Mountain (Yushan) and Hehuanshan in northern and central Taiwan, all received a covering of snow, according to Central Weather Bureau.

The bureau confirmed that sleet was spotted falling in Anbu in the Yangmingshan on the outskirts of Taipei at 3:23 p.m. Sunday and lasted more than an hour.

Low temperatures will continue through early Wednesday morning, while another cold surge is expected to strike Taiwan on Feb. 10, the bureau said.

Hehuanshan saw its heaviest snowfall of this winter Sunday, with accumulation of over 20 centimeters, attracting tourists in great numbers.

Over the three days, police have helped tourists trapped in more than 50 vehicles in the snow a day on average, Juan Han-kui (阮漢魁), a police officer, said Sunday.

Juan said that he has observed many people give the police the "thumbs-up" sign to thank them for patrolling the area in bitter cold to ensure safety of tourists.

At the area around Songxue Lodge, at the height of 3,115 meters, at Hehuanshan, where dense fog has reduced visibility to near zero, drivers could only follow the police whistle and the glow sticks, said Chang Wen-sheng (張文盛), a police officer.

(By Shih Hsiu-chuan)
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