Committee to assess crop damage after Jordan River flood

AMMAN — A committee comprising administrative governors, representatives of the agriculture sector and farmers in the Jordan Valley is working to assess the damage to crops planted on the banks of the Jordan River, which flooded due to heavy rainfall on Wednesday, according to a senior official.

The committee is evaluating the scope of the damage to farming plots in Northern Ghor, President of the General Union of Jordanian Farmers Odeh Rawashdeh told The Jordan Times on Saturday over the phone. 

He noted that farmers were impacted and suffered losses, and require support. 

"The agricultural risk fund does not cover this aspect, and we hope that laws are amended to protect farmers against wind and floods, and even border closures, which pose a risk to agriculture," Rawashdeh said.

For his part, Jordan Valley Farmers Union President Adnan Khaddam said that the committee requires four days from Saturday to assess the initial damage. 

"We believe that building several dams and cleaning the course of the river could limit the increase of water levels and potentially end the problem," Khaddam said.

When asked about the frequency of flooding incidents, the union president said that in some winter seasons, the river overflows two to three times.