More snow, heavy rain forecast for Tuesday, Wednesday

AMMAN — The Kingdom will remain on Tuesday under the impact of a depression and a polar front, with heavy rain and snow forecast, the Jordan Meteorological Department (JMD) said Monday.

The weather on Tuesday will be very cold, cloudy and rainy, head of the JMD's weather forecast section, Raed Rafed, said, noting that snowfall is expected in areas located 800m above sea level and higher.

"Snowfall intensity will be slight to intermediate, while accumulation will depend on the elevation of each area. By nighttime, snowfall chances will drop in the northern and central regions of the Kingdom," Rafed told The Jordan Times.

Temperatures during the day will be 4°C, dropping to -1°C at night in Amman, while winds will be northwesterly brisk and gusty.

"Daytime temperatures on Tuesday will be 8°C below their annual average of 12.1°C for this time of the year, while nighttime temperatures will be -1°C in east Amman and -2°C in its western parts," Rafed noted.

The very cold weather will continue prevailing on Wednesday, when it will be partly cloudy with slight to intermediate rain showers across the country, according to the weather forecaster, who highlighted that snow showers are also expected on high mountains.

"By nightfall, chances of snow and rain will drop. Freezing temperatures and ice formation, even in the Jordan Valley, are expected," Rafed said.

Temperatures during the day will be 4°C, dropping to -2°C in east Amman and -3°C in its western parts, while winds will be northwesterly moderate.

Fog, partly cloudy and very cold weather is forecast on Thursday, according to the JMD, which said that ice formation due to freezing temperatures is still expected.

Daytime temperatures will be 6°C, dropping to -2°C in east of the capital and -3°C in the west, while winds will be easterly slow.

The depression and the very cold polar front started affecting the country on Saturday, bringing sufficient rain and snow to several parts of the country.

By Monday morning, the JMD registered the highest snow accumulation in Ajloun Governorate's Ras Munif, where snow reached 6cm.

Salt in Balqa Governorate followed, with snow accumulation reaching 2cm.

Snow in Tafileh reached 1cm, according to Rafed, who said that snow accumulation could be higher in areas where the JMD doesn't have stations.

Despite snowfall in several governorates, the Public Security Department (PSD) said in a statement e-mailed to The Jordan Times that all of the country's roads were open to traffic.

The PSD said main roads are open but urged motorists to exercise extreme caution. 

By Monday, the rain and snow brought on by the polar front channelled 3 million cubic metres (mcm) of water into the Kingdom's dams, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, quoted Jordan Valley Authority Director Saad Abu Hammour as saying.

He noted that dams' storage currently stands at 164mcm of their total capacity of 325mcm.