A suffocating sandstorm hit Lebanon for the second day running, leading to five deaths and 750 cases of asphyxiation or shortness of breath in the northern and eastern parts of the country, medical and ministry sources said Tuesday.
The Health Ministry said Joumana A.L. passed away at the Baalbek Public Hospital and Hadla A.A. died at Tamnine Hospital in the Bekaa Valley.
Medical sources told The Daily Star three citizens including a little girl and two elderly women, also died as a result of the dust storm that moved Tuesday to the capital Beirut and other parts of the country, a day after it swept across north and east Lebanon.
The fatalities were identified as four-year-old Nadine Nazha, from Nabi Othman east of Baalbek and a woman in her mid-70s, known by her family name Nimr, a native of nearby Ansar. The third victim was an 87-year-old woman from the southern Lebanese border town of Khiam.
Dust and fog enveloped the capital Beirut and other regions of Lebanon, leading to reduced visibility on major roads.
A source at Beirut airport told The Daily Star that the storm could delay flights but the impact is still uncertain.
Lebanese Red Cross called on citizens who have asthma to stay indoors.
“We advise citizens who suffer from asthma to stay home,” the Lebanese Red Cross wrote on its official Twitter account.
The Health Ministry also urged citizens who have allergies, chronic pulmonary or heart disease as well as the elderly, children and pregnant women to “stay home and avoid exposure to dust" or wear face masks if they do venture outside their homes.
The storm disrupted daily life in an unprecedented fashion, closing down most businesses and restaurants in the northern city of Tripoli.
The yellow-tinted skies prevented residents of the northern Akkar province and the Baalbek-Hermel district in the east from making their daily commute, as cars and homes were covered in a thick layer of sand.
The sandstorm also covered the southern city of Sidon, halting port operations.
The weather department at Beirut airport said the storm, coming from Iraq, will continue throughout the day with chances of rain in the northern Bekaa Valley around midday.
It said cloudy, dusty and hazy skies will continue through Wednesday before the storm begins to fade after sundown.
By Rima S. Aboulmona
