China, May 23, 2021:
In a mountainous part of northern China, 21 people were killed after hailstorm, freezing rains and high winds hit runners taking part in a 100km (62-mile) ultramarathon in Yellow River stone forest near Baiyin in north-western Gansu province of China.
“Twenty-one people died and eight were injured,” officials from Baiyin told a news briefing.
In a very short span of time as in the frictions of seconds, around noon, hailstones and ice rain abruptly fell and the temperature was dropped all of a sudden.
At around 2pm, rescue teams were dispatched and the race was immediately called off by the local authorities.
Temperatures in the mountainous terrain dropped further overnight on Saturday, making search and rescue more difficult, Xinhua news agency reported.
Yellow River stone forest is famous for its rugged mountain scenery marked by stone stalagmites and pillars, and is used as a location in many Chinese television shows and movies, according to the China Daily.
