The peak of Israel's winter storm has passed, leaving Jerusalem with a disappointing 5 centimeters of snow, while a more substantial 15 centimeters fell in parts of Safed and other Galilee hilltops. The cold snap is due to continue, with rain throughout the north and center of the country persisting today, and snow mixed with rain in the hills. Snowfalls in the hills will resume Friday morning and it will remain wet and cold throughout Saturday and Sunday.
Roads 1 and 443 leading to and from Jerusalem were closed by the police throughout the night due to ice but were opened this morning. Jerusalem Municipality announced that schools would reopen at ten this morning, but schools will remain closed in most local authorities surrounding the capital, and in many locations in the Galilee and Golan Heights.
More than 17,000 households found themselves without electricity yesterday as demand reached an all-time high 12,200 megawatts, surpassing the previous record of 11,640 megawatts, in the huge storms of December 2013. The power outages, mainly in Netanya, Herzliya, Ra'anana, Rishon Lezion, Petah Tikva, Rehovot, Ashdod and Ashkelon were due to high winds bringing trees down onto power lines. Israel Electric Corporation (IEC) (TASE: ELEC.B22) said that it took an average of three to four hours to repair breakdowns.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on January 8, 2015
© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2015