SHENZHEN is entering the coldest part of the year with light rain and low temperatures of 5 degrees Celsius over the weekend because of a strong cold front.

    Frozen roads and snow brought by the cold front may disrupt the Spring Festival holiday rush, which begins Jan. 24, the Shenzhen Meteorological Observatory said.

    But the situation won’t be as bad as that reported in early 2008 because this year’s extreme cold is expected to last for a few days, far shorter than that in 2008 when hundreds of thousands of people in South China heading to their home provinces for the Spring Festival were stranded on roads because of heavy snow and frozen roads, according to the national weather observatory.

    Three rounds of cold fronts are expected between Jan. 20 and Feb. 6.

    The coming week will see an average temperature of 15 degrees Celsius. (Han Ximin)