'Bags of salt distributed to Amman residents to equip them to deal with snow'

AMMAN — Manaseer Group, a major fuel company in the Kingdom, is distributing bags of salt free of charge to Ammanis in preparation for potential snowfall during winter, a company official said on Wednesday. 

Muhannad Manaseer, marketing and sales manager at the group, said 500,000 kilogrammes of salt have been bagged, each containing 50 kilogrammes. 

"These bags are being distributed to families through our stations in Amman," he told The Jordan Times over the phone.

The capital's residents can spray the salt near their homes when it snows to prevent the roads from becoming slippery due to ice.

"We want to make snow easier to deal with in Jordan. Look how people in Europe work during snowfall; we want to enable Jordanians to carry on with their lives when it snows," he added. 

Manaseer noted that distribution started three days ago and covered 10 per cent of the group's locations. 

Gas stations on the airport road, Bayader Wadi Al Seer, Shmeisani, Abdullah Ghosheh Street, Marka, Mecca Street, Al Hurriyah Street, Al Sarou road numbers 1 and 2 and Tabarbour have been distributing the salt bags so far. 

Farouq Shalaldeh, a resident of Bayader Wadi Al Seer, commended the initiative. 

"I live far from the main street and every time it snows it takes time to open the roads. This will help us depend on ourselves," he told The Jordan Times.  

Sanad Abu Assaf, who lives in Shmeisani, said there is an urgent need for the private sector to work with the public sector during winter. 

"This is a good example of such cooperation and other companies have to follow the steps of Manaseer Group," he added. 

Manaseer said the group will add more snow-clearing vehicles to its fleet in preparation for winter. 

"We are members of committees that include the Greater Amman Municipality and the Ministry of Public Works and Housing for winter preparations," he added.