Snow cuts power in east China

More than 110-thousand households in Anqing City in east China's Anhui Province are still suffering from power cuts. The blackout began on Sunday, when heavy snow hit most of the province. Let's take a look at how people have coped without electricity in Tongcheng, where the situation is most serious.

It's a tiny convenience store. The owner says the top selling items right now are candles. Darkness is not the only trouble. With no power, electric water pumps have stopped working.

A villager in Tieshan Village of Tongcheng in Anhui said, "Without electricity, we have to get water from a pond."

Daily routines have been disrupted.

Another villager said, "Now we have dinner at five in the afternoon, and go to bed when it turns dark."

The blackout was caused by heavy snow at the weekend. The first snow this winter brought down power poles and transmission lines, affecting more than 640-thousand households in Anqing city.

More than 500 staff from local power supply companies have been busy repairing the lines, and power has returned to most of the affected regions. Officials say full power will be restored on Saturday.