Jordan | Activity in southeasterly winds at the end of the week and recommendations to avoid swimming in the Dead Sea

Arab Weather - God willing, the Kingdom is expected to be affected during Thursday/Friday night and Friday day by moderate to active southeasterly winds, accompanied by strong gusts ranging between 60-70 km/h, on the slopes of the mountain heights, especially the southern ones and the Shafa and Ghor areas, including the Dead Sea. The southeasterly winds also cause dust and dirt to rise in desert and exposed areas, causing a decrease in horizontal visibility.

Active easterly winds cause increased coldness and recommendations to avoid swimming in the Dead Sea on Friday

Although temperatures will remain about 2 degrees Celsius higher than their average for this time of year on Friday, the perceived temperatures will be low, and the feeling of coldness will increase significantly due to the expected activity in the speed of the easterly winds. Although the maximum temperatures will also reach about 30 degrees Celsius in the Dead Sea, the weather will not be suitable for swimming due to the activity of the easterly winds.

Arab Weather warns of the risk of the Dead Sea waves rising significantly during this period, which increases the risk of people running aground in the sea waters to the west, and may also lead to drowning, especially for people who are not professional swimmers. It is worth noting that the region rarely witnesses drowning cases related to this matter, but some incidents have occurred in the past, the last of which was in March 2015, which led to one death and dozens running aground towards the Palestinian coast to the west.

Why does the risk of drowning in the Dead Sea increase when the east wind blows?

The winds that blow in Jordan usually come from the northwest or west, and are often light to moderate in speed. Therefore, they push the waves on the small surface of the Dead Sea lightly to moderately, and this is why tourists and swimmers rush to the beach naturally and gradually without much effort, as the winds blow from behind them, meaning that they come from the west and northwest.

In March 2015, two drowning incidents occurred due to strong easterly to southeasterly winds blowing across the country, which meant that the waves and currents were against swimmers, making them unable to return to shore as they would on normal westerly days.

What makes it even more difficult for swimmers is the nature of the Dead Sea water, which is characterised by its high salinity and density. As soon as the waves hit the swimmers’ faces, the salty water enters their eyes and mouths, which makes them unable to see, and they begin to feel “sick”.

And God knows best.