Report by Melvina Srour

Translated by Aline Aoun

Kfardebian, one of the largest and most important ski centers in the Middle East, has begun preparing to launch the tourism ski season. This year did not want to fold its last days without generous showers of rain, promising a new ski season par excellence.

The towns of Faqra - Oyoun el Siman - Kfardebian are overcrowded with the cars of visitors and nationals who enjoy skiing. Some of them practice this hobby and others enjoy the view of the snow and go to restaurants and other tourism sites.

The Deputy of Kfardebian's Municipality Head, Tony Zugheib, said in an interview accorded to the "National News Agency," that "the municipality has taken procedures and measures to ensure the success of this season," adding that it has prepared all the municipal bulldozers and those provided by the Ministry of Public Works, to secure the opening of sub-roads in tourism areas.

He added that a special bulldozer has been set at the disposal of those tourism institutions in Oyoun el Siman-Faqra.

"The municipality has organized a traffic plan for the municipal police in coordination with the security forces, especially the Internal Security Forces, in a bid to organize the functioning of cars and buses in order to avoid traffic jam," Zugheib stressed.

He said that a square had been constructed in Kanater- Kfardebian, in close proximity to the ski centers, which can contain at least 100 tourism buses. "Also, vans have been readied to transport tourists to ski centers,” Zugheib added.

Zugheib said that the municipality had also specified phone numbers to report any emergency: 711160/09 -710160/09.

The Red Cross will be on alert in case of any emergency.

Zugheib confirmed that the municipality had set up support walls from its private budget to avoid skidding of cars.

Seirge Akiki, responsible for Kfardebian's media center, stressed that the local authorities and departments were preparing to cope with the tourism ski season in Kfardebian through the maintenance of all vehicles and bulldozers, the expansion of roads and developing a parking lot for cars and buses.

"Kfardebian is fully ready to receive ski pioneers and tourists," Akiki asserted.

“Pray for rain, so that we will witness abundant rain and snow to compensate for the losses which severely affected the region last year,” he concluded.

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