SINGING IN THE SNOW
Ministers and MPs from the ruling Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) were trapped by snow for a day on February 4. A heavy snowstorm blocked the only road leading to Belmeken lodge in Rila Mountain, 2220 metres above sea level. Encouraged by the warm weather, BSP decided to hold its seminar in Belmeken. The storm caught everybody by surprise and Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev, together with other BSP ministers and MPs, had to wait until the morning of February 5 for the road to be opened. After leaving the lodge, MPs said they had kept their spirits high by singing Soviet revolutionary songs.

LETHAL INCIDENT
A 29-year-old Russian man died on February 5 in Bansko after an accident in the Shiligarnika area. The incident happened at about 11am. According to initial information from the Mountain Rescue Service, the man was a snowboarder, but later, police said he was a skier. Apparently, he was skiing at high speed, went off the ski run and hit a tree. Emergency crew reacted straight away and gave him first aid, but he later died from severe injuries.
 
WATER SHORTAGE
Because of massive construction of new tourist complexes, Pamporovo is facing a water shortage crisis if more water reservoirs are not built. This was said by Deputy Regional Development Minister Domcho Mihailovski. Pamporovo was facing the possibility of going on a limited water supply schedule. At the moment, 45 litres a second are used, while the needed quantitiy is 100 litres a second. The local municipality cannot afford to invest in more water supply facilities, so finance will be provided by the state, Mihailovksi said. So far, the state has provided seven million leva, with which more facilities for water supply from the nearby village of Mugla will be built. This will secure the needed capacity, Mihailovski said. According to local tourist industry representatives, the reason that, until now, there were no water restrictions was because there were not that many tourists. The appearance of snow changed that in days.

SNOW IN CHEPELARE
After two months without snow, it finally snowed in Chepelare on February 4. The snow cover at the ski complex Mechi Chal is about 40cm, with good ski conditions between the peak and the mid base of the gondola.

FOREIGNERS WELCOMED
After the Christmas holidays, Bulgarian winter resorts welcomed mainly foreigners. Such is the case with Pamporovo in the Rhodope Mountains. Currently, hotels in the resort are mostly occupied by foreigners. Tourists from England and Ireland make up the majority of the guests. The few Bulgarian tourists who visit usually arrive for a weekend and rarely stay for the whole week.