Risk of flash floods remains in south as rain continues to fall
Cold, wet spell expected to continue until Thursday, and weather will start to warm by Friday
The spell of cold and rainy weather was set to continue Wednesday, with authorities warning of the ongoing risk of dangerous flash floods in Israel’s south until Thursday.
Some snow was expected in the Hermon Mountain area in the north on Wednesday.
The skies will be clearer by Friday, with a warm weekend ahead.
On Tuesday rescue workers found the bodies of a brother and sister who went missing after their car was carried away by a flash flood in southern Israel the day before. A third woman who was with them was located and rescued.
The two fatalities were identified as Ma’ayan, 24, and Sahar, 17, Assor, both residents of the northern city of Tiberias.
Israel was hit by stormy weather and heavy winds Monday afternoon just as many flocked to nature sites to enjoy the outdoors over the weeklong Passover holiday.
The rescued woman, 21, was in good condition, though she was suffering from mild hypothermia, the MDA ambulance service said.
Recounting the ordeal to paramedics, the woman said the car was swept from the road by a powerful torrent. As the car began to fill with water, the group abandoned the vehicle. She said she was carried by the stream multiple kilometers as she sought to keep her head above water, before finally finding refuge on rocks by the side of the stream.
The trio managed to contact authorities to report they were caught up in a flash flood. Contact with the three was lost Monday evening, police said.
Earlier Monday, three women caught up in a flood in their vehicle near Eilat were rescued and transported to Yoseftal Hospital in the city for frostbite treatment, police said.
The military said Israeli Air Force helicopters and forces from the IDF’s Unit 669, a combat rescue and evacuation force, rescued multiple civilians Monday night across southern Israel, in cooperation with the Israel Police, Magen David Adom medics, the Israel Fire and Rescue Services, and regional rescue units.
Authorities urged “citizens to show responsibility and not go near the flood areas.”
