A board flies from the B.B. Tower, scaffolding collapsed in Ashdod: The 'Barbara' is already in Israel

February 6, 2023   

Storm Barbara arrived in Israel this morning (Monday): Strong winds have already begun to blow throughout the country, and rain has already begun in the northern region. Rain will arrive in the center later. Along with the rain, temperatures will begin to drop, with strong winds of 60-80 kilometers per hour blowing in most parts of the country, and on the coastal plain they may even reach more than 100 kilometers per hour. Snow will fall on Mount Hermon. Local sandstorms are expected in the south. The rain will intensify on Monday night. The peak of the storm is expected on the night between Tuesday and Wednesday, when temperatures will be the lowest this week, and snow will fall in mountains that are more than 1,000 meters high. On Thursday, the system will be behind us. The storm's damage has already begun: • A 13-year-old girl was slightly injured by a tree that fell in Or Yehuda. Rescue forces called to the scene provided her with medical treatment and evacuated her to Sheba Hospital in Tel Hashomer. MDA paramedic Yuval Melek said: "When we arrived at the scene, we saw the victim conscious, walking near a tree that had fallen due to the strong winds in the area. We provided her with medical treatment and evacuated her to the hospital in a minor condition." • An 81-year-old man was slightly injured after falling on the street due to the strong winds. Emergency medical technician Nahum Nachmias said: "When we arrived at the scene, we went up to an apartment in a nearby residential building. We were told that he had fallen due to the strong winds and one of the citizens brought him into the apartment to keep him safe, so that he would not be on the street with the strong winds. He was conscious and suffered minor injuries to his upper limbs. We provided him with medical treatment and evacuated him to a hospital, in a light condition." • A 23-year-old cyclist was moderately injured after a glass window fell from a residential building on Hamsger Street in Tel Aviv. Rescue forces evacuated her to Ichilov Hospital, suffering from head injuries. The paramedics who arrived at the scene said: "We saw the cyclist conscious while there were shards of glass near her. She suffered a head injury and pain in her upper body. We provided her with medical treatment and evacuated her to a hospital in stable condition. The helmet she was wearing undoubtedly saved her from a much more serious injury." • In Ashdod, scaffolding at the TAMA 38 site on Rabbi Akiva Street in District 3 collapsed onto parked cars. Not far away, on Adonnu Baruch Street in District 9, a tree fell on a parked car in a residential neighborhood and hit the wall of the house next door. No casualties were reported. • Metal plates fell from a tower on Ben Gurion Street 1 in Bnei Brak. The street was closed to traffic from Abba Hillel Street in Ramat Gan to Hayarkon Street in Bnei Brak. Police forces on the scene. • Kfar Chabad: Due to the stormy weather, a huge tree fell on Rabbi Trebnik Street. A tree also fell on a vehicle in Haifa.