Sanitation workers clear snow from a street in Hegang City, northeast China's Heilongjiang province on Nov 22, 2021. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

BEIJING - China's meteorological authority on Friday issued a yellow alert for cold waves, forecasting low temperatures and gales in vast regions of the country.

Snow and sleet will hit parts of north, central and south China from Friday to Sunday, with heavy rainfalls and rainstorms expected to lash some regions of south China's Hainan Province, said the National Meteorological Center

From Friday to Sunday, temperatures are expected to drop by 6 to 10 C in some areas of north, central, east and south China, according to the National Meteorological Center.

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The forecast added that some areas could see a temperature drop of more than 14 C.

Snow and sleet will hit parts of north, central and south China from Friday to Sunday, with heavy rainfalls and rainstorms expected to lash some regions of south China's Hainan province, the center said.

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China has a four-tier, color-coded weather warning system, with red representing the most severe weather, followed by orange, yellow and blue.