Beijing 'Airpocalypse': Surviving In The Smog Season
While some of the world leaders tussled on the fate of climate in Paris, Beijing is facing a different scenario. The residents of the city are struggling to survive in the silhouettes of buildings and factories.
The people are facing a multi-day pollution known as "Airpocalypse" signifying the beginning of smog season in one of the most polluted capitals of the world. The scene in the city in one of the New Year's Day gathering is like a science-fiction film. Visions of everyday life, but with a jarring difference that will make people realize that they are living on another planet or in a distant future era.
It's New Year's Day celebration, but some people do not want to risk it. The city was smothered in the worst smog of the winter. A gray blanket hangs in the sky, obscuring the building across the street, and swamping the surrounding with a haze.
At the school's main entrance, there is a warning sign that says: "It's a no-go day" stay indoors at all costs. The airpocalypse has arrived."
According to Foreign Policy, Beijing's air quality is considered as a big problem. The effect of the high level of pollution can be seen to the physical changes of the architecture of the city. The buildings and other establishments are being reconfigured. The daily routines are even modified to allow a normal life to continue despite the toxic shroud.
The use of paper face masks is already common in the city. The heavy-duty mask with purifying canisters filters is often seen on the streets. According to The Guardian, the bike lanes are completely deserted during the bad days. People mostly stay at home or stay in conditioned environments of hermetically-sealed malls.
The British School which is the latest Beijing's international colleges has spent £3m on a pair of domes to cover the area of six tennis courts with hospital grade air filtration systems following the exclusive satellite for British private school Dulwich College that opens its clean-air dome.
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