Smog Leaves 20,000 Stranded at Airport in China

Heavy smog at Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport stranded 20,000 passengers over the weekend.
Labeled as the “worst fog in years” closed the airport's runway for nearly 10 hours, and at least 90 flights were canceled. Nearly three dozen arriving flights were forced to land at other airports.
Visibility was less than 700 feet in many areas, prompting Chinese officials to issue an Orange alert, China’s second highest warning for air pollution. Chengdu is notorious for its bad air.
According to the New York Times, a recent study of air quality in five Chinese cities found that in Chengdu, air quality falls outside the good range for 40 percent of the year.
Chengdu also suffered the most prolonged spells of heavy pollution. Conditions are so bad that back in 2013, the city opened a clinic for patients who suffered from symptoms related to smog, coughs, sore or itching throats, asthma and heart disease triggered or worsened by smog, the South China Morning Post reported at the time.