Friday, December 13, 2013

Snow is getting dangerous

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Photo by my friend "ester"

The snow continues to fall in Jerusalem and the Jerusalem Hills, in the Galilee and Golan, in the West Bank, and in the highest altitudes of the Negev.
No one expected so much snow (over 47 cm right now)  and for so many days.
What began as fun and pretty has turned into a national emergency.
The worst is that some 30,000 households are still without power.
With below-freezing temperatures it will be a cold night for these families with no heat.

Drivers are told to stay home.
Hundreds got stuck in snow on the Jerusalem-Tel Aviv highway last night and waited up to 10 or 12 hours to be rescued.
The police and the municipalities could not cope and called in the army.
They were taken to Binyanei HaUma convention center which quickly became a "refugee center" for a thousand people. 

Streets inside Jerusalem were impassable and even the tram slipped off its tracks.
Trees are breaking or toppling over from the weight of the snow.

For us living down in the Negev the rain will continue tomorrow.
In my town, Meitar, we had trees down from fierce winds and some flooding in schools and public buildings.
In my apartment the electricity, telephone, Internet, and cable TV takes turns going on and off for the last few days.

I will be happy to see the sun again.

You can keep up with the bad situation through our local newspapers, e.g.
 http://www.timesofisrael.com/
 http://www.jpost.com/
http://www.haaretz.com/

Shabbat shalom
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15 comments:

  1. That's two years running you have seen snow. Just like living here! :)

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  2. I've seen how much is snowing there on TV. Amazing! Glad you are warmer, Dina.

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  3. That photo by your friend "ester" brings to mind scenes from Dr. Zhivago! Are you sure that's not St. Petersburg??

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  4. Adullamite, 2 or maybe 3 years in a row. That's a lot. Last January Jerusalem had snow.

    JM, thanks, glad to know it is getting some coverage.

    Sara, ha, it's just Jaffa Road in downtown Jerusalem. But now you have me humming the Dr. Zhivago theme.

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  5. Lots of rain and hail here in the center of the country.

    Stay warm and dry my friend.

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  6. Happy Snowy Day Dina. Stay warm and safe.

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  7. Lots of cities are used to intense snow falls and are well equipped to deal with it. Jerusalem's problem is that most winters it receives no snow fall at all, or just some muddy sludgy snow and is not at all prepared.

    Climate change is going to ruin us all :(

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  8. That is a lot... and in a country not used to winter weather. Hopefully a warm spell shows itself soon.

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  9. Please stay warm and don't take chances, Chicago girl!

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  10. Oh wow! I know it's silly, but I keep thinking of Jerusalem as a warmer place without snow. But, you really got quite a snowfall there.

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  11. Sooo much snow! I saw these pictures on TV... seems unreal and impossible...
    Have a nice week-end, Dina!

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  12. I've seen a little about it on TV here in Sweden too. That would be considered a lot of snow in a short time even here in Sweden so I can certainly understand that it must be difficult dealing with it in Israel!

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  13. We'll be looking at a scene like this in the AM 8-14 inches headed our way.

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  14. Hard to imagine all the problems with snow for those not used to it.
    However, we pray for Israel and soon the sun will shine on your land again:-) Stay safe and warm Dina!
    We still have no snow in Grimstad and probably we will not get anything for Christmas either.. so the world is weird.
    The photo by Ester is beautiful!

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  15. I wonder if some of Israel 'friends' are studying this situation for their future advantage...

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