Millions of Chinese have been prevented from celebrating Lunar New Year with their family due to the worst winter weather in the country in almost 100 years.

Three weeks of severe snow storms, mainly in southern China, came at the worst possible time for China's transport system, as 200 million workers attempted to travel home for the holiday.

With the Beijing Olympic Games just over 180 days away, a huge firework display and Olympic show was put on near the Olympic Park in Beijing.

Wang Hui, head of the Olympic organising committee's media department, said the Olympic show was aimed at letting the people experience the Games.

"Temple fairs are for ordinary folk to enjoy," she said.

 

Weather delay

On Wednesday, China's meteorological administration lifted a severe weather alert across the affected areas in central, southern and eastern China.

But the backlog of passengers that had built up during weather delays, did not ease straight away, as not all passengers could get the tickets they wanted.

In the southern province of Guangdong, where about 30 million workers from across China are employed in factories and sweatshops, as many as 12 million people decided to stay in their dormitories, bracing for a bleak New Year.

The weather has disrupted power supplies, causing millions to face a festival season with little or no access to electricity and water.

Furthermore, the severe storms hampered the delivery of foodstuffs and other products, which has in turn inflated their prices due to short supplies.

"Prices go up every Spring Festival, but it was never such a big jump in the past. Especially fruit and fireworks. They can't be delivered because of the snow," said Zhao, a 53-year-old office worker in Jinan.

The Year of the Rat, which begins on February 7 and ends on January 25, 2009, succeeds the Year of the Pig, in which China's economy grew by 11 per cent.

The Rat year, first in the Chinese zodiac, is supposed to be free of difficulty and worry, and full of opportunity and good fortune.

Those born in a Rat year are gifted with intelligence, ambition, fastidiousness and creativity.