BEIJING, Dec. 13 -- China's meteorological authority on Wednesday renewed a yellow alert for blizzards, forecasting intense snowfall in the north of the country.

Parts of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Hubei, Henan, Hebei, Beijing, Shandong and Liaoning will be hit by heavy snow from Wednesday evening to Thursday evening, according to the National Meteorological Center (NMC).

The NMC also renewed a yellow alert for a cold wave, predicting that temperatures in most parts of China will drop by 8 to 12 degrees Celsius from Wednesday evening to Saturday.

In addition, the center renewed a new yellow alert for ice formation in parts of Shaanxi, Shanxi, Henan, Hebei, Shandong and Hubei provinces, forecasting freezing rain.

China has a four-tier, color-coded weather warning system, with red representing the most severe weather, followed by orange, yellow and blue.