China Sandstorm: Beijing Blanketed In Red Dust As Biggest Storm In Over A Decade Hits [PHOTOS]

The Chinese capital, Beijing, was buffeted by the most severe sandstorm to hit northern China in over a decade late Wednesday.

Authorities at the national observatory issued a sandstorm yellow alert -- the third-most serious warning -- and many areas in the city recorded air pollution readings of nearly 1,000 micrograms per cubic meter, a level considered hazardous, the South China Morning Post reported.

Agency images showed huge traffic jams, and city residents donning masks and goggles to fend off the red sand.

Beijingers are used to contending with extreme levels of air pollution – with the city's air being among the most consistently polluted in the world.

Pollution gets so bad that runners during last year's Beijing marathon were photographed wearing gas masks to offset the effects of the city's smog.

In addition to the capital, 11 other provinces in the country were impacted by the storm.

Internet users in China branded the storm "Sand-ageddon." "It's very dirty, I feel like it is the end of the world," one Internet user said.

"It feels like we are living in a desert. I wonder how we can survive such bad weather," another online poster said, according to Australia's 9 News.