PHOTOS: Smog in Parts of China Is so Bad Now That People Can Hardly Take It

'I thought someone's house was on fire'

A residential block covered in smog in Shenyang, China's Liaoning Province on Nov. 8, 2015. STR/AFP/Getty Images

This picture taken on November 8, 2015 shows a residential block covered in smog in Changchun, northeast China's Jilin province. A swathe of China was blanketed with dangerous acrid smog on November 9 after levels of the most dangerous particulates reached around 50 times World Health Organization maximums, with energy use for heating blamed as winter sets in. STR/AFP/Getty Images

The levels of PM2.5, the tiny airborne particles considered harmful to health, reached an astronomical 860 micrograms per cubic meter, according to WHO, as reported by AFP. WHO’s recommended maximum is 24 micrograms over a 24-hour period.

Many residents went on social media to complain. “Waiting for the wind to change is how the government deals with air pollution,” one person said on Sina Weibo, a Chinese Twitter-like website.

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