The severe winter storm that continues to sweep across Lebanon and which is expected to last until Thursday has so far killed four people and
forced the closure of schools across the country in addition to some
roads. On Tuesday night, mountainous roads were blocked by snow
which fell at 700m above sea level.
In this context,
schools will be closed tomorrow (Thursday) due to the deteriorating weather conditions, according the Ministry of Education.
While the weather is expected to improve as of Thursday
afternoon, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation and Meteorology warned of
icy roads between Thursday evening and Friday morning. According to the
Directorate, the weather on Thursday will be partly cloudy to cloudy with light showers in the morning and sporadic snow over 200m, in addition to a further drop
in temperatures. The weather is expected to improve gradually during the day.
Snowfall recorded 300 m and above
On Wednesday, snow fell on
Akkar's coasts at 400m and above.
Akkar’s mountainous roads remain inaccessible and snow bulldozers are working on opening roads
in al-Dreb, al-Bireh, al-Kbayat, the mountainous regions of Akkar and al-Jouma.
Electricity in the area has been cut off since Tuesday and residents are
rushing to gas stations to buy diesel fuel for heating. This as An-Nahr al-Kabir flooded over the Akkar plains.
In
Zahle, snow fell at 800 meters and above.
In
Kesrouan, Aajaltoun and Achkout also recorded snowfall in addition to
Batroun’s town and villages located at 300m and above where a layer of hail and
snow covered roads and orchards. Meanwhile, bulldozers are working on reopening
roads in Tannourin, Douma, Bchaaleh, Kfour, al-Arabi, Hardin and other Lebanese
towns.
In
West Bekaa, the snow storm reached its peak at dawn in
Rachaya and West Bekaa as snow fell on towns located at 1,200m and above,
forming a 50 cm thick layer of snow.
The towns of Ain Ata, Iha, Yanta, Deir al Achayer and Halwa
are isolated due to snow accumulation and road cuts. This was also the case of
Ain El Tineh and Maydoun. The town of al-Sarira is semi-isolated due to
surrounding floods.
In
south Lebanon, snow fell on the outskirts of the city of
Nabatieh mainly in Qalaat al-Chakif, Arnoun, Yohmor, Kfartabnit, Hursh Ali
al-Taher all the way to nearby towns of Haboush, Kfar Jawz, Deir al-Zahrani and
Arabsalim. The snowfall was followed by showers which removed the snow crust.
However, the mountains of Qalaat al-Chakif remain completely covered.
Rain water formed puddles in which cars drowned on the Harouf
– Nabatieh road and Nabatieh – Nabatieh al Fawka road.
Meanwhile, snow covered coasts from Tyre all the way to the
Lebanese borders.
In
Aley, the Damascus
International Road was cut off as of Aley’s roundabout due to the accumulation
of snow.
Storm Damage
Floods swept through the Akkar plain, the town of Sheih Zinad and
regions of al-Arida, Hakr al-Dahri and al-Semmakiyeh due to the flood of the
Oustouwan River and An-Nahr al-Kabir, damaging large areas of crops.
The storm also caused tremendous damages to crops mainly
winter crops and dozens of greenhouses in West Bekaa. Floods left large agricultural
lands over-drenched.
Heavy snowfall and rainfall also led to a remarkable rise
in the water
level
at Lake
Qaraoun.
The Litani River flooded over the town of Bar Elias due to heavy rain and floods, threatening nearby towns.
As for Beirut southern suburb’s area of Hay al-Sellom, water levels remain high due to the flood of the Ghadir River. Works are
underway to open sewage canals.
This as Syrian national Mohammad Kaadan (born in 1970) was found dead inside his room in the town of
Saadnayel with the cause of death related to extreme cold. The snow storm had
so far killed three others.
Meanwhile, the seaside road under Nahr al-Kalb has been cut-off due to the rise of the river's water levels as the Public
Relations Department at the ISF’s Directorate
General called on citizens to avoid Dbayeh’s seaside road.
As for the Ain Saadeh-Beit Meri road, security forces blocked it due
to remarkable damages caused by the storm.
42 rescue operations
In this regard, the director of Civil Defense operations, George Abu
Moussa told LBCI that the severity of the storm makes the Civil
Defense’s mission more difficult, advising citizens not to head towards
mountainous roads.
In turn, the director of the Lebanese Red Cross
Emergency Medical Services Department Georges Kettaneh said that the Red
Cross has so far carried out 43 evacuation operations including 13
birth cases, adding "it would be better for citizens to stay at home and
stick to the instructions of the ISF and the Civil Defense.” Kettaneh
pointed out that the Red Cross has rescued 126 people in Ain Dara since
Sunday.
For his part, Future
bloc MP Assem Araji told LBCI that by tomorrow, the Bekaa will witness a disaster “in light
of the state administrations’ absence.”
REMINDER:
Emergency: 112
Civil Defense: 125
Beirut Fire Dept: 175
Red Cross: 140
Beirut Airport: 150