A Phantom Wind Stalks the Streets
A ghostly force is sweeping across northern China—so fierce, so relentless, that even the wind itself seems to hunt the vulnerable. With gusts screaming at 150 kph, officials have issued an eerie warning that sounds more like fiction than fact: if you weigh under 50 kilograms, stay inside... or risk being blown away.
It’s not a joke. It’s a public safety warning.
This unprecedented advisory was delivered as an orange-level alert—the second-highest in China's system—blanketed the capital for the first time in ten years. The source? A brutal cold vortex plunging down from Mongolia, lashing Beijing, Tianjin, and Hebei with feral winds strong enough to rip full-grown trees from the earth.
The Streets of Beijing Fall Silent
Beijing, home to over 22 million people, turned into a wind-blasted ghost town. Parks shut down. Trees were hastily trimmed or chained to the ground like wild beasts. Still, nearly 300 trees were toppled, crashing onto cars and scattering debris like splinters from a shattered world. No casualties were reported—this time.
One local whispered to Reuters, “Everyone in Beijing was really nervous. The streets are almost empty. It’s like the city is holding its breath.”
Steel Birds Grounded, Roads Sealed Shut
Travelers found themselves stranded as more than 400 flights were canceled at Beijing Capital International Airport, and train lines froze in place. Even supermarket shelves, normally bursting with goods, were stripped bare as panic swept in like a second storm.
Further out, in Hebei’s Shijiazhuang and Laiyuan County, the wind dragged down more trees and sent metal and signs whipping through the streets like thrown blades. Roads were barricaded. Nighttime sandstorms closed off entire districts, cloaking towns in suffocating dust.
Out west in Gansu and Ningxia, visibility fell to an apocalyptic 50 meters. Entire cities vanished in a haze of sand.
This Is Just the Beginning
The China Meteorological Administration reports that level 11 winds bring “serious damage,” while level 12 signals “extreme destruction.” These gusts are brushing up against level 13—a breath away from disaster.
The storm is still crawling across the map, its cold fingers reaching for more. If you’re light, if you're frail, or if you're just unlucky enough to be caught outside… you could vanish like a leaf in the storm.
Stay inside. Lock the doors. The wind is hungry.
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