BEIRUT — A large fire broke out in front of the Imam al-Mahdi schools in the village of Ghazieh (Saida), setting cars and school vans on fire, according to L'Orient Today's correspondent in the south.

The Lebanese Civil Defense teams and the Islamic Health Authority were eventually able to extinguish the fire.

According to L'Orient Today's correspondent, a grass fire initially broke out due to weather conditions and then spread to the cars and vans.

The vans that caught fire were dedicated to transporting students to the al-Mahdi School.

The fire index is higher than the seasonal normal, due to strong khamsin winds blowing over Lebanon. These dry, hot and dusty winds are expected to reach 80 kilometers/hour according to Jocelyne Abu Fares, head of the forecasting division at Lebanon's Meteorological Department.

"The vegetation is already somewhat dry, and any factor facilitating the outbreak of a fire can be decisive," she told L'Orient Today on Tuesday.