On the evening of the 2nd, hundreds of tourists at China's Taibai Mountain Scenic Area in Shaanxi queued for shuttle buses to descend the mountain. Due to snowfall causing icy roads and difficult vehicle movement, some tourists were stranded for several hours and ultimately chose to walk down the mountain.
Taibai Mountain Tourists Describe the Situation
According to Jimu News, on the evening of the 2nd, multiple netizens posted that hundreds of tourists were stranded at the Taibai Mountain Scenic Area in Baoji City, Shaanxi. Around 9 p.m., several tourists said they had been stranded at Taibai Mountain for several hours at night, with hundreds waiting in line for shuttle buses to descend. The temperature on the mountain was very low, below minus ten degrees Celsius, and snow was still falling. In on-site videos, tourists could be heard shouting, “Refund our tickets.”
Around 9 p.m. on the 2nd, interviewee Ms. Chen said she had just taken a bus down from Taibai Mountain after being stranded on the mountain for about four hours. She was processing a ticket refund, as the scenic area provided free instant noodles and hot water. Ms. Chen queued for the shuttle bus at the second transfer station, starting at 5 p.m., with the line stretching several kilometers. After waiting a long time with no buses arriving, she and her companions began walking down. “We were the first ones to start walking down, and it was about 7:40 p.m. when we finally got on a shuttle bus, but after boarding we just sat in the bus for a long time,” Ms. Chen said. An estimated several hundred people were stranded on the mountain, with icy roads and extremely low temperatures at night.
An official from the Meixian County Culture and Tourism Bureau stated that at around 7 p.m., about five to six hundred people were stranded at the scenic area, and bureau leaders had already arrived on-site to coordinate.
The Meixian County government service hotline customer service said that evening that they had received feedback about the situation by dusk, and the county government had organized personnel and vehicles to clear the way and ensure tourists’ safety descending the mountain. At the same time, they would also provide tourists with warmth and food supplies.
Taibai Mountain Scenic Area Issues Temporary Closure Notice
It is understood that the Taibai Mountain Scenic Area previously had a cableway for descending the mountain. However, as it is currently under inspection, the cableway is not in operation.
Scenic area staff said that as of 8:30 p.m. that night, all tourists on the mountain were already on shuttle buses, and it was expected that everyone would arrive at the mountain's visitor center by around 10 p.m. He pointed out that the snowfall caused roads to become icy, making it difficult for scenic area vehicles to operate. For safety reasons, they first cleared the icy roads and then installed anti-skid chains on the buses, which caused some delays.
At around 9:57 p.m. on the 2nd, the Taibai Mountain Scenic Area issued a temporary closure announcement stating that due to snowfall, the scenic area roads had accumulated snow and ice. In order to ensure the safety of the majority of visitors, the Taibai Mountain Scenic Area decided to temporarily close on January 3rd and suspend admission to visitors.