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News / Winter Weather
Winter storm brings Middle East city its first snowfall in years
By Courtney Travis, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Updated Feb 23, 2021 12:01 PM EDT
A snowstorm resulted in famous Greek landmarks such as Acropolis’s temples, including the Parthenon, being blanketed in snow. Buzz60’s Mercer Morrison has the story.
A winter storm, referred to locally as Storm Joyce, dove southward through the eastern Mediterranean Sea this week, leaving a fresh covering of snow for portions of the Middle East.
On Wednesday, snow blanketed the eastern Mediterranean coast and spread to Lebanon, Jordan and Syria, with flakes reaching northern Saudi Arabia on Thursday.
The accumulating snow slowed travel and prompted school delays, but it also postponed COVID-19 vaccination campaigns across the region, according to The Associated Press.
According to the BBC, this was Jerusalem's first snowfall in six years. Police were forced to close a major roadway between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem on Wednesday night due to the snow.
Snow covers the Dome of the Rock Mosque in the Al Aqsa Mosque compound in the Old City of Jerusalem, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
In addition to the snow, the storm delivered a rush of gusty winds across parts of Lebanon, Jordan and Egypt.
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Gale-force winds reached Lebanon as Storm Joyce arrived late on Tuesday, with wind reporting gusts of 50-60 mph (80-95 km/h). Winds exceeded 62 mph (100 km/h) in some parts of Jordan.
The storm also delivered some of the lowest temperatures so far this winter to parts of the region.
The same storm was also responsible for producing accumulating snow in Greece, including the capital city of Athens on Monday and Tuesday.
The storm, which produced widespread power outages, was blamed for at least three deaths, according to the AP, which cited Greek media reports.
People enjoy the snow at Filopapos Hill in front the ancient Acropolis hill, with the ruins of the fifth century BC Parthenon temple, in Athens, on Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2021. Unusually heavy snowfall has blanketed central Athens, with authorities warning residents particularly in the Greek capital's northern and eastern suburbs to avoid leaving their homes. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
Additionally, public transportation was halted across Athens, and trees, weighed down by the heavy snow, lost branches and took down power lines. The storm took place amid ongoing COVID lockdowns in the capital and surrounding regions.
Another winter storm could be on the way for the final week of February, introducing more rain and mountain snow for the Middle East, AccuWeather meteorologists say.
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