ULAN BATOR, Dec. 18 (Xinhua) -- Around 90 percent of the Mongolian territory has been covered with snow of up to 38 cm thick, increasing the risk of the extreme wintry weather known as "dzud," the country's National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) said Monday.
Dzud is a Mongolian term to describe a severely cold winter when a large number of livestock die because the ground is frozen or covered with snow.
Currently, at least 41 soums (administrative subdivisions) of 11 provinces of the country are experiencing dzud, NEMA said in a statement, adding that 48 soums of 11 provinces are suffering from near-dzud conditions.
Meanwhile, since the beginning of last week, a strong cold front originated in Siberia, Russia, has been sweeping across extensive areas of Mongolia, causing temperature drops and bringing strong winds and blizzards.
Heavy snow and blizzards are also expected to hit large parts of the country this week, said the weather monitoring agency. ■
