‘Karim’ cold spell forecast to linger until Wednesday

AMMAN — As the Kingdom remains under the grip of a cold front, temperatures are forecast to reach -2°C in Amman and drop to around -6°C in Badia regions on Monday night, according to Arabiaweather.com. 

“There is a possibility of limited snowfall in mountainous areas, especially in the south on Monday,” Chief weather forecaster for Arabiaweather.com Omar Dajani told The Jordan Times over the phone on Sunday.

The Arabiaweather.com forecast showed that the current cold air mass is expected to remain until Wednesday, as temperatures are expected to rise on Thursday, bringing stable weather conditions. 

Videos which were circulated on social media on Sunday morning showed accumulation of snow in the southern governorate of Tafileh, which the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported to have received 10 centimetres of snowfall. 

Snow caused several road closures leading to Bseira, Grindel and Qadiseyah districts in the governorate, Petra reported, noting that later in the day, authorities had opened the roads. 

Mountainous areas in Tafileh also witnessed snowfall, frost and brisk winds, with temperatures falling below 0°C, according to Petra.  

Regional news outlets called the cold front “Karim”, noting that it has impacted Turkey, Iraq, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Saudi Arabia and Egypt. 

In light of the weather conditions, the Education Ministry decided on Saturday to postpone classes on Sunday to 10am, noting that education directors are instructed to coordinate with administrative governors in their areas to take decisions based on the weather conditions in their respective locations. 

In a statement published online, the ministry said the decision covers public, private, military, UNRWA and Syria refugee camp schools. 

Several universities and educational directorates also announced the day off.

Meanwhile, Water Minister Raed Abul Saud urged the public, farmers and shepherds to take precautions to protect their water meters, crops and livestock from the inclement weather conditions, according to a statement sent to The Jordan Times.