Jordan | Heavy rains, strong winds, and snow at the beginning of the fifties of winter... Thus was the atmosphere of the first fourth-degree depression this winter

Written By رنا السيلاوي on 2023/02/09

This article was written originally in Arabic and is translated using a 3rd party automated service. ArabiaWeather is not responsible for any grammatical errors whatsoever.

Weather of Arabia - After we bid farewell to the quadrature of winter with a weak rainy performance, the fifties of winter came in its first week, laden with goodness, thanks to God, as Jordan was affected - thank God - by an air depression classified as fourth-degree (high and precious) that brought with it heavy rain and some snowfalls on The northern and central regions of the Kingdom, and this is a summary of the most prominent events during the period of the impact of the depression, and scenes from the Arab Weather team’s coverage of the latest developments.

In chronological order: a summary of the weather conditions that prevailed during the period of the influence of the depression

Monday (6-2-2023)

The effects of the depression began on Monday, as it was accompanied by a very cold air mass in all layers of the atmosphere. During the day, a stormy atmosphere became corrupted, and dense dust waves and sandstorms formed in the desert areas at the forefront of crossing a highly effective cold air front, which slowly crossed the northern and central regions of the Kingdom. And the weather turned with the hours of Monday afternoon to stormy and heavy rain, and heavy showers of hail fell.

On Monday evening, the peaks of the northern mountainous heights, especially the peaks of the governorates of Jerash and Ajloun, especially the regions of Ras Muneef and Ebbin, witnessed the first snowfalls during the winter season. The snow was accumulated and led to the closure of some secondary roads during the hours of Monday / Tuesday night.

And due to the additional deepening of the cold winds in the layers of the atmosphere, the snow extended in the late hours of Monday / Tuesday night to some peaks of the central mountain highlands, including the Balqa peaks, and some high neighborhoods to the west and north of the capital, Amman, including the Khalda region and Tlaa Al-Ali, and it accumulated for a short period, and it is considered These are the first snowfalls of the season, although not extensive.

Watch: video Scenes of the first snowfall in northern and central Jordan during the winter of 2022/23

On Tuesday (7-2-2023)

On Tuesday, stormy and rainy weather prevailed in the north and center of the Kingdom. The rain was heavy and accompanied by showers of hail and mixed with snow over the central mountainous heights. Snow was also falling over the heights of Jerash and Ajloun, which are more than 1,200 meters high, with clear accumulations of snow.

During the night hours of Tuesday/Wednesday, a new cold air front crossed, and rain continued in the north and center of the Kingdom, it was sometimes thundery, and the level of snowfall decreased to 1,000 meters, affecting areas below that sometimes, thank God.

Witness: The heights of the capital, Amman, are decorated with snow on Tuesday night 7-2-2023

On Wednesday (8-2-2023)

On Wednesday, the depression moved away from the Kingdom, but very cold and humid polar air currents rushed behind it, as sporadic showers of rain fell in the north and center of the Kingdom, in the form of intermittent snow in some mountain heights of more than 1,200 meters.

As for the south of the Kingdom, snow fell and accumulated over the heights of Karak and Tafila, and rain fell in the rest of the regions.

And with the hours of the night of Wednesday / Thursday, the cold air mass dominated the Kingdom, but the air activity clearly decreased, and a very cold atmosphere prevailed with the formation of frost, especially in the northern heights of the Kingdom and the Sharah Mountains.

(Snowfall of Al-Ais, Tafilah Governorate - Wednesday)

The effect of depression on the water situation in Jordan and the recorded amounts of rain

The northern regions, in particular the Ajloun governorate, in addition to the central regions, including the capital, Amman, received good and large amounts of rain, as more than 100 mm of precipitation was recorded in several regions, and the performance of the rainy season is fine, praise be to God.

According to the Ministry of Water and Irrigation, rainfall increased after the depression to 71.8% of the long-term general annual average, accounting for 90.3% of the total rainfall last year.

After the depression rains (until Thursday morning), the total storage volume in the dams increased to 113.5 million cubic meters, or 40.5% of their total storage capacity of 280.7 million cubic meters. Details

The most prominent events during the fourth-degree depression

Suspension of all school hours for Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays due to weather conditions.
Suspending the working hours of several official universities for Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays in order to preserve the safety of students and workers due to weather conditions.
Postpone the start of the working hours of the ministries and official institutions on Wednesday and Thursday until ten o'clock in the morning.
The "local administration" declared the maximum severe emergency since Sunday night, in preparation for weather conditions.
The Greater Amman Municipality declared a state of extreme emergency, starting Monday morning, to deal with the depression.

Accidents and damages:

The Civil Defense rescued six people in Irbid on Tuesday, after they were attacked by rainwater..Details
The evacuation of 21 people from Karak after they got stuck in the snow on Wednesday..Details
Public Security and specialized teams have responded to 50,000 calls on the emergency phone 911 since the beginning of the depression.
The collapse of a 30-meter-tall cement wall in Suf, west of Jerash, due to heavy rains..Details
On Wednesday, the electrical load in Jordan recorded the highest electric load recorded in Jordan, at 4090 megawatts.

How was the road condition affected during the depression?

The competent mechanisms dealt with the removal of some snow accumulations for several roads in the capital, and there were no road closures. Snow plows also dealt with removing snow accumulations in the governorates of Ajloun, Jerash, Balqa and Tafilah. The following are the roads that were closed, whether due to rain, dust, snow or freezing:

Bushra Al-Ramtha Road in Irbid Governorate was closed on Monday due to high levels of rain..Details
Partial closure of Al-Jaish Street in Zarqa on Monday after a huge tree fell due to the wind..Details
Al-Ramtha / Al-Mughayer Road (Al-Shajara) was closed as a precaution on Wednesday, due to the ruggedness of the road.
Wadi Al-Qamar Road was closed as a precaution on Wednesday.
On Wednesday, the desert road was subjected to active winds that stirred up dirt and dust and caused a lack of horizontal visibility.
Freezing occurred on the Shobak road on Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, as it was traveled with caution.
Abu Sayyah Road in East Amman was closed on Wednesday morning due to high water levels.
The Moon Valley road in the Rusaifa area was partially closed on Wednesday morning due to the high water level.
The Ministry of Public Works and Housing began, on Wednesday evening, sprinkling salt on roads where frost is expected to occur... Details
A state of freezing occurred on Thursday morning hours and interruption of movement on the roads. The freezing included wet roads and places of water gathering, especially in the highlands of the Kingdom, such as the area of Ras Muneef, Sakhra, Ibbin, Al-Qaida, and Samta in Ajloun Governorate, and the Arhaba area in the Northern Mazar Brigade in Irbid Governorate. In addition to the Tafila Heights, especially Al Rashadiya and Al Qadisiyah.

Live coverage from the Arab Weather team of the effects of the depression

Since the hours before the impact of the depression began, the Arab Weather team has been transmitting to followers the latest developments in weather conditions through continuous weather updates, direct coverage and field tours with Arab Weather representatives. Kingdom's governorates:

Special coverage from Arabia Weather studio:

Field tours with representatives of the Arab Weather: