Winter is belatedly keeping its promises in Lebanon. After a dry and warm January, followed by a rainier first half of February, the second half will be marked by a true polar storm named Adam, which will cover even low altitudes with snow, down to 300 meters, in particular in North Lebanon.

Jocelyne Abou Fares, head of the forecasting division at Météo-Liban, described this meteorological depression as a "snowstorm," which she explained to L'Orient-Le Jour, originates from the North Pole, and its characteristic is that it heads directly towards Lebanon, hence it will not lose any of its coldness when it reaches the region.

The expert noted that the depression will go through three main stages. The first, from Wednesday to Thursday evening, will be rainy, especially on Thursday, with snow in the high mountains, at over 1,000 meters above sea level. From Friday and through the weekend, temperatures will drop: On the night from Friday to Saturday, snowfalls will abruptly descend from 1,200 meters to 800, or even 700 in North Lebanon. There will be some clear spells on Friday, but the weather will be foggy and rainy over the weekend, and snowfall will occur at low altitudes.

The third stage will extend from Monday to Wednesday and will be colder than it is rainy, with snow in North Lebanon and the Bekaa. Temperatures will remain polar, with ice forming on the roads.

Regarding temperatures, Météo-Liban could only provide precise forecasts until Friday: An average of 8 to 15 degrees on the coast, 2 to 8 in the high mountains and 3 to 10 in the Bekaa. Temperatures will remain low until they start rising again next Wednesday.

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Necessary precautions

Storm Adam will not be accompanied by particularly strong winds but by rain, snow, and ice. On the country's aging roads, dangers will not be lacking.

Abou Fares recommended taking several precautions over the next few days. According to her, Thursday will be the rainiest day, with the possibility of hail: It will be necessary to remain vigilant for possible street flooding.

Friday, even though it may experience clear spells, will be the day of a drastic drop in temperatures, with the possibility of ice forming on mountain roads. Therefore, motorists heading to the mountains in the next few days starting from Friday should be cautious. They should also account for the thick fog at high elevations throughout the storm's duration.

Over the weekend, it is the accumulation of snow at low altitudes that could pose a danger on roads in the mid-mountains or cause road closures in the high mountains, particularly on essential routes like Dahr al-Baidar for passage to the Bekaa.

However, Abou Fares did not think that an interruption of Beirut airport's activity was on the agenda, even though a flight from Istanbul to Beirut on Wednesday was canceled due to snow in Istanbul.

To know if the upcoming weather conditions will somewhat compensate for the very low precipitation rate this year, the expert said that it would be necessary to wait until the end of the storm to find out. The good news is that the cold helps prolong the snow cover, facilitating a slower and later melting of the snow, which contributes to replenishing aquifers, Lebanon's main water resource.

Precautionary measures in regions

North Lebanon and the Bekaa are preparing for these days of polar cold, according to L'Orient-Le Jour's correspondents.

The governor of the Bekaa, Kamal Aboujaoudeh, gave his guidelines to officials of the Internal Security Forces (ISF) and public works to ban the passage of transit cargo trucks through Dahr al-Baidar from Thursday, Feb. 20 to Tuesday, Feb. 25, inclusive. This decision was made in consultation with Interior Minister Ahmad al-Hajjar, according to L'Orient-Le Jour correspondent.

In Akkar, in the far north of the country, snow clearing officials told L'Orient-Le Jour's correspondent that they secured the necessary quantities of salt and snowplows to open roads as needed, in the heights, in the countryside of Qaytaa, or in Qobeyat. They asked residents to follow directives given during the height of the storm, to only leave their homes in case of emergency, and to install chains on their tires.

The Lebanese Red Cross and Civil Defense are gearing up to provide assistance to residents if needed in the mountains of North Lebanon and other regions.

The municipalities of Akkar gave guidelines to the population, including ensuring enough water, food, and fuel oil or wood to last a few days. They advised ensuring medication, constantly checking on elderly or disabled neighbors, equipping vehicles with antifreeze, and taking the necessary measures in case of emergency travel, keeping a shovel and emergency kits in the car.

The education sector

In anticipation of the storm, Education Minister Rima Karameh issued a circular in which she said that "since the impacts of this depression differ from one place to another and from one altitude to another, school directors should decide on measures to take and a potential closure depending on the ability to access the school, with the main criterion being the preservation of public safety."

This article was originally published in French in L'Orient-Le Jour.