Beijing Chokes on Dust as Sandstorms Return With a Vengeance
People wearing face masks walk across a street in the central business district in Beijing on March 22.
Photographer: Mark Schiefelbein/AP Photo
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Beijing warned vulnerable residents to stay indoors Wednesday, as a sandstorm — the third this month — combined with regular industrial pollution to create a thick, unbreathable haze over the city, the worst in two years.
The city’s Ecological and Environmental Monitoring Center set its highest pollution level and asked people to avoid outdoor activities because of sand and dust blowing in from the outskirts.