Lebanon hit by severe snowstorm
Lebanon, Local, 1/12/1998

A rare snowstorm hit Lebanon over the weekend, holding up hundreds of people in the snow-covered mountains, keeping children away from schools and killing at least one person.

The storm also cut telephone lines and caused electricity failures in several parts of the country.

Weather reports have said it is the worst snowstorm to hit the country in ten years. Other reports said Lebanon has not seen such bad weather since 1983.

The storm, which began late Saturday, was continuing through Monday and was expected to persist with snow starting at 300 meters.

The international road of Dahr el-Baidar leading to the Syrian capital Damascus was closed Sunday due to the snow.

Meanwhile temperature in Beirut have dipped to an all-time low of 5 degrees Centigrade while reaching five degrees below zero at 1,000 meters and above.

The storm caused the most damage in eastern Lebanon's Bekaa Valley and some parts of northern and southern Lebanon, and authorities were working on opening main roads.

One woman, Nohad Habshi, died on a road in the Bekaa when her car skidded on the snow and overturned. Her husband and her sister, who were both in the car, were injured and were hospitalized. Several other weather-related accidents have occurred on mountain roads, but there were no reports of casualties.

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