23 April 2013
BEIRUT: Unusually heavy late season storms have soaked Lebanon with an uncommon amount of rain, meteorologists said Monday.
Sunday storms brought 7.2 mm of rain to the Beirut Airport area, pushing the yearly rainfall to 897 mm, well over the yearly average of 825 millimeters of rain. Meteorologists at Rafik Hariri International Airport told The Daily Star the rainfall has been unusually heavy this year, pointing out that at this point last year there was 785.2 mm of accumulated rain and only 800 mm of rain overall in 2012.
The last time Lebanon saw such heavy rainfall was in 2009, when the country was inundated by double the average monthly rates, canceling schools and closing roads.
This year, heavy winter rains caused fatalities as well as flooded streets and damaged infrastructure. Heavy winds and floods early in the year led to the deaths of four people, including one child. Over 55 people were injured in the floods, which were made worse after a construction company narrowed a waterway pushing water levels higher in the impoverished Beirut suburb of Hay al-Sellom.
Cars were also flooded and roads were washed out. Heavy rains in Tripoli raised the possibility of buildings collapsing to old infrastructure.
Heavy rains were also a major problem for Syrian refugees who live in overcrowded and unfinished buildings across the country that leak and flood with the storms. Several families had to be relocated to alternative shelters and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees reported that a number of people became sick from the cold weather and rain.
There is no rain forecast for the rest of this week and temperatures are likely to rebound to the high 20s after having fallen during the weekend’s storms. Highs are expected to reach the low 30s by the beginning of next week.
Copyright The Daily Star 2013.
