Beijing schools close as city issues first smog red alert

BEIJING – Schools closed and rush-hour roads were much quieter than normal as Beijing invoked its first-ever red alert for smog Tuesday, closing many factories and imposing restrictions to keep half the city’s vehicles off the roads.

The alert in effect through Thursday – the most serious warning on a four-tier system adopted in 2013 – means authorities have forecast more than three consecutive days of severe smog.

Despite some improvement in Beijing’s air over the past year, readings of dangerous particles Tuesday were as high as a dozen times the safe level, in what has become an embarrassment for a government that has made a priority of cleaning up the legacy of pollution left from years of full-tilt economic growth.

A gray, soupy haze subsumed Beijing’s unique landmarks, and convenience stores did brisker-than-usual business selling air-filtering masks as residents sought to spend as little time outdoors as possible.

“This is modern life for Beijing people. We wanted to develop, and now we pay the price,” Beijing office worker Cao Yong said during a break from work.

Under the alert, schools were advised to close voluntarily unless they had good air filtration systems. However, Beijing’s education commission later issued a separate order for all schools to close through Thursday.

Readings of PM2.5 particles climbed above 300 micrograms per cubic meter in some parts of the city Tuesday and were expected to continue rising before the air begins to improve with the arrival of a cold front on Thursday. The World Health Organization designates the safe level for the tiny, poisonous particles at 25.

Along with limiting cars to driving every other day depending on the last number of their license plate, a raft of other restrictions will seek to reduce the amount of dust and other particulate matter in the city of 22.5 million people. Officials said extra subway trains and buses would be added to handle the additional strain on public transportation.