Snow adds woes to quake-stricken county in China's Sichuan

Special report:Reconstruction After Earthquake

BEICHUAN, Sichuan, Jan. 9 (Chinese media) -- "Damn it, I

can't brake." The driver's desperate yell left everyone in a cold sweat.

But the Volkswagen Toureg stopped in time -- its rear

wheels merely 30 cm from the cliff. Chinese media reporter Liu Dajiang describes

Thursday's trip to Beichuan as "incredibly perilous."

He said: "It was a life-and-death moment. The SUV

that was driving uphill suddenly slid back toward the 2,180-meter tall cliff."

The icy mountain road that served as a lifeline in

Beichuan, a county that was reduced to rubble by the strong earthquake of May

12, was as slippery as glass. The road, connecting 12 outlying towns and

villages, was covered with snow and ice, with two major cave-ins.

Along the route, Liu said he saw more than 200

workers doing repairs and clearing ice and snow.

Heavy snow that began to fall on New Year's Day has

disrupted road traffic since Jan. 2, cutting off more than 60,000 residents,

said Huang Junshan, a traffic police officer in Leigu Township.

To ensure road safety, Huang and his colleagues

stopped every passing vehicle, registering the number plates, taking photos and

making sure the tire chains were in place.

"We urge drivers with less than three years' road

experience to abandon their trips into the mountains," said Huang.

The 36-km trip from Leigu Township to Yuli Village,

the endpoints of the road, takes three hours.

Leigu and Yuli were among the worst-hit areas in the

8.0-magnitude quake. Thousands of people died. Schools and hospitals were

relocated to prefabricated structures, while villagers built huts with boards

and felt.

As temperatures fell to the freezing point, most

villagers heated their homes with firewood.

"Fortunately we've stored some supplies," said Liu

Taiyuan, 72.His little cabin in Yuli Village was kept warm by charcoal. Homemade

sausages hung on the wall.

Liu and his wife kept adding fuel to the stove, but

the place was still too cold for their 12-year-old grandson, who huddled under

his quilt to watch TV.

By the end of last year, Liu said the local

government had rationed out rice, cooking oil, quilts, winter clothing, and 140

yuan (20 U.S. dollars) in cash. "The real trouble is transportation," said Liu.

"A trip to Leigu Township costs 150 yuan."

The traffic logjam hampered the construction of

permanent homes, said village official Fu Zhanguo. "A brick that sells for 0.3

yuan in other counties costs three times as much here."

Next to Liu's cabin stood his partly built new home.

The concrete structure and roof were in place, but "we're still waiting for

bricks to complete the house," said Liu.

As of Friday, 16 provinces -- more than half of the

country -- have had snow or sleet. Ice storms have snarled traffic in central,

eastern and southern China, posing threats to the coming Spring Festival travel

rush, which starts Sunday.

There's no forecast for snow in arid Beijing,

however, in the next 10 days, the municipal meteorological bureau said Friday.