On the third anniversary of the Dead Sea tragedy | How did the catastrophic atmospheric instability form

Weather of Arabia - It is known that cases of atmospheric instability are a weather phenomenon that may be extreme in many cases, and is accompanied by severe weather phenomena, such as heavy rains, torrential rains, floods and lightning strikes, and even tornadoes are considered one of the phenomena of atmospheric instability.

We are now in the year 2021 remembering the painful tragedy that befell Jordan in 2018, with the loss of a number of students and school staff, as well as the tour guides accompanying them in a huge torrent in the Zarqa Ma’in Valley in the Dead Sea. This tragedy was caused by a state of air instability.

Chronology of the state of atmospheric instability on 25/10/2018

During the period between October 21 and 24, the Kingdom was under the influence of an extension of the Red Sea depression, where the weather conditions were unstable in many areas, and thunderstorms fell on a daily and local basis in random areas in conjunction with a significant rise in temperatures.

However, on 10/25/2021 a cold air mass approached the Levant region, to converge with the hot air mass accompanying the extension of the Red Sea depression, and here the unstable atmosphere intensified and thunderstorms began to fall with the morning hours in all regions of the Kingdom from Aqaba to Irbid and passing The capital, Amman, the Dead Sea and the Jordan Valley.

The torrential thunderstorms caused floods and a large runoff in valleys in various regions of Jordan. Unfortunately, these torrents coincided with a school trip in Wadi Zarqa Ma'in in the Dead Sea, which led to a catastrophe that claimed the lives of 21 children, women and men.