'Off the scale' smog envelops Beijing again, US embassy says
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A man wearing a face mask crosses a road during heavily polluted weather in Beijing on Jan 29, 2013. Pollution levels in Beijing rose above index limits on Jan 29, the United States embassy said, as a dense cloud of haze shrouded large swathes of northern China. -- PHOTO: AFP
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Cars drive on Guomao Bridge on a heavy haze day in Beijing's central business district Jan 29, 2013. Beijing's air pollution returns to 'hazardous' levels, two weeks after record readings of small particles in the air sparked a public outcry. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
A man wearing a face mask crosses a road during heavily polluted weather in Beijing on Jan 29, 2013. Pollution levels in Beijing rose above index limits on Jan 29, the United States embassy said, as a dense cloud of haze shrouded large swathes of northern China. -- PHOTO: AFP
Cars drive on Guomao Bridge on a heavy haze day in Beijing's central business district Jan 29, 2013. Beijing's air pollution returns to 'hazardous' levels, two weeks after record readings of small particles in the air sparked a public outcry. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
BEIJING (AFP) - Pollution levels in Beijing rose above index limits on Tuesday, the United States embassy said, as a dense cloud of haze shrouded large swathes of northern China.
Mask-wearing residents of the capital battled through a second consecutive day of pollution at hazardous levels, despite Beijing municipal authorities warning those with respiratory difficulties to stay indoors.
It is at least the fourth time a dense cloud of haze has descended on northern China this winter, reducing visibility and causing flight delays, with even state media repeatedly expressing anger over the issue.
"The current environmental problems are worrisome," Mr Wang Anshun, who took over as mayor of the Chinese capital this week, was quoted as saying by the official Xinhua news agency.
