CAIRO (Middle East Eye) – People in
several Middle Eastern countries were on high alert over the weekend, as a barrage of extreme weather events swept the region.
Emergency services have been deployed, as countries scramble to deal with extreme and unusual conditions, with many onlookers frantically posting photos and videos online.
Helicopters could be heard circling over Lebanon’s south on Sunday, following an outbreak of fires across various towns the previous evening.
According to Lebanese authorities, the fires have killed at least one person, a foreign worker, who died after the fires reached a warehouse in the city of Jdeideh, north of Beirut.
Lebanon’s prime minister, Najib Mikati, ordered the authorities and the army to take immediate action in tackling the fires, which could be seen near the southern port city of Tyre.
The blazes, which have been attributed to the high temperatures, spread to several mountainous regions, and in some cases burned close to residential areas in nearby villages.
In Iran, people on Sunday were forced to flee their homes as two strong earthquakes struck the country.
According to state TV, one person, a 22-year-old, has been reported dead, after an electric pole fell on his head as a result of the earthquake.
The earthquakes, which hit southern Iran near the port of Bandar Abbas on Sunday, were 6.3 and 6.4 magnitude. The tremors could be felt as far as Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia.
IN Egypt, people in the southern city of Aswan were left scrambling for safety as a horde of scorpions took over the city.
Three people were killed and at least 400 were stung, overwhelming hospitals in the area.
Reports state the scorpions were washed into the streets and peoples’ homes, where they were seeking refuge from the intense weather conditions.
Aswan’s governor, Ashraf Attia, has placed restrictions on travel and traffic due to the low visibility levels caused by the extreme weather.
Citizens have been urged to stay at home and avoid places where there are trees, as well as driving on motorways.
Schools in Aswan have also been ordered to close.
Egypt’s Meteorological Authority say they expect intermittent rainfall to continue in the coming days, as well as thunder, in many parts of south Sinai, and southern Egypt, including cities such as Minya, Assiut, Sohag, and Luxor.
A plunge in temperatures in Saudi Arabia has resulted in floods in many parts of Jeddah, on the country’s Red Sea coast.