AMMAN — Since the unfortunate incident that took the life of a
young man in Maan, whose vehicle was swept away by flash floods, experts renewed
their calls on the government and on the individuals to be cautious around
low-lying areas affected by flashfloods resulting from heavy rainfall. The
flashfloods have recently become unpredictable due to climate change.
اضافة اعلان
Head of
Jordan Meteorological Department (JMD), Raed Rafed Al-Khattab, said to Jordan News that the JMD, as a routine
process, identifies areas that are likely to be affected by flashfloods and
issues a warning map of the locations and severity level. He also pointed out
that the areas of the south and east, and specifically Maan governorate, were
classified during the recent storm within medium warning areas; which required
exceptional measures to face any potential threat to people’s lives and
property.
Khattab clarified that the JMD issues the
weather warnings in advance through JMD’s pages on social media and various
other media platforms. “I personally believe that these warnings are even more
important than the weather forecast, and I call on everyone to read them
carefully and take them into consideration.”
Khattab ruled out that any entity is to blame
for the unfortunate death as Jordan’s topography is conducive to flashfloods.
“We have to just stay away from areas that are likely to be affected by
flashfloods, and to be cautious,” he said.
Head of the Jordanian Geologists Association,
Sakher Nsour, urged cooperation among government institutions to identify the
hotspots that are prone to the occurrence of flashfloods and to develop a
strategic plan to how to address the phenomenon.
He added that an early warning system should
be put in places when flashfloods are likely to occur, in addition to placing
the necessary signals to warn individuals.
Nsour suggested establishing a “crisis cell”
that brings together representatives of different ministries to develop joint
contingency systems to handle extreme weather conditions. “Severe weather
conditions cannot be prevented, but losses can be mitigated,” he said, adding
that climate change is a global long term development that people must learn to
deal with.
As a precautionary measure,
Greater Amman Municipality (GAM) developed strategic plans to deal with the flashfloods in
different places in Amman, according to GAM official spokesman Nasser
Al-Rahamneh.
Rahamneh told Jordan News that GAM
constructed drainage ducts in areas subject to flashfloods and has increased
manholes and other infrastructures that mitigate the problem.
He also said that GAM specialized teams visit
the shopping areas in and around Amman, especially downtown to warn them of any
possible depression to take their necessary precautions.
Areas in southern Jordan, such as Ras Al-Naqab and
Al-Marigha district in Maan governorate were most affected by heavy rain and
flashfloods on Sunday evening. Warnings
were in place for those areas, even after the rainfall had stopped.
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