Zud

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A Zud is a Mongolian term for the extreme conditions which exist after a hot summer is followed by a cold winter; it can include dust storms as well as blizzards. They usually happen once or twice a year; people are killed every year in these storms.

The ground can become frozen so hard that animals cannot graze and water cannot be easily extracted. Although Mongolia is a country with a continental climate and low precipitation, occasionally freak and extreme snowfalls can cause herd animals to drown in the snow.