If You Can't Scuba Dive, Might as Well Mud Dive

The torrential winter rain storms of January 17-18 cut off travel along Route 40 at a number of places. The road between Sede Boker and Mitzpe Ramon was severed by overflowing wadis in several locations and there were major floods along Nachal Paran, south of Mitzpe Ramon toward Eilat.

Route 40 between Sede Boker and Eilat

One major area of flooding was in Sede Boker, right at the entrance to Ben Gurion's desert home and his burial place overlooking the Ein Avdat Valley.

  

Flooding at Sede Boker and Ben Gurion's desert home and burial site. Note the overturned bus stop.

With the main road south to Eilat blocked for several days, tourists were forced to improvise their vacation plans.

What's a tourist to do if you can't get to Eilat?

 If you can't scuba dive, might as well mud dive. Let me tell you, that water is COLD!

 

The Storm of the Century - Aftermath II

It is exactly a month since the Storm of the Century dumped over 6.5 inches of rain on the Negev in 24 hours, more than had fallen in the past 10 years altogether. In its aftermath, dry river beds and wadis ran with flash floods, overflowed their banks, and washed away roads, guard rails, cars, trucks and people.

 Nachal Paran (A) and Nachal Meishar, about 40 miles south of Mitzpe Ramon

Nachal Paran is a dry river valley that lies about 40 miles south of Machtesh Ramon on the way to Eilat. Where it crosses Route 40 it joins another dry river bed, Nachal Meishar. These two rivers gushed with flash floods after last month's storms, overflowing their banks and washing away parts of Route 40. Some big trucks were unfortunate enough to try to cross Route 40 during the floods, where their drivers got into big trouble.

 Trucks caught in the flood waters of Nachal Paran

In the photo below a number of drivers and passengers get stranded on top of their vehicles as the flood waters rise.

A helicopter is called in to rescue the stranded victims.

The hapless drivers are pulled to safety in the nick of time.

 

Be careful when you drive in desert storms and don't take any unnecessary chances with water covered roads!

   

The Storm of the Century - Aftermath I

By Tuesday, January 19, the rains had subsided leaving Mitzpe Ramon shrowded in a thick pea soup fog. In town the fog covered everything with a cold haze.

A thick fog covered Mitzpe Ramon after the storm

Out on the Machtesh, a complete white out wrapped the crater in a thick gauze of white.

Post-storm fog whites out the Machtesh

But by late afternoon, the fog had burned off leaving blue sky with fair weather cumulus clouds.

 Fair weather cumulus with some thunderheads remain after the fog burns off

Around town, large pools of water accumulated everywhere.

 

And a young Ibex wanders about in the post rain fog.

A young Ibex wanders near the Lookout in the post-storm fog in Mitzpe Ramon

  

 

The Storm of the Century - II

The following day rain continued to pour down on Mitzpe Ramon and the central Negev. A rare collision of warm, moist air from Africa and cold air from Eastern Europe had created a storm that most had not seen in their lifetime. Over 6.5 inches of rain fell within 24 hours, more than had fallen in the past 10 years altogether.

I head to the Crater Overlook to experience the full force of the storm

Your intrepid reporter beats a hasty retreat from the fury of the storm

  

The Storm of the Century

On the evening of Sunday, January 17 and continuing through the next day, the Negev saw summer thunderstorms not seen in over 100 years. In one 24 hour period 6.5 inches of rain fell, more than had fallen on the Negev in preceding 10 years altogether.

The storm began as we headed back to Mitzpe Ramon from Be'er Sheva in the early evening. As we drove south the sky began to darken with clouds, and as night fell, the horizon was lit with almost continuous flashes of lightning all around us. The air began to smell of rain and suddenly it was gushing all around us. These weren't just drops but spikes of rain, long and thick and punishing as they fell. Lightning flashed all around us, as thick as a wrist before my eyes, and thunder crashed all about.

I began to fear that we might encounter a flash flood in a Wadi that would wash away the road. But the presence of a car on the road ahead of us, a bolder driver than I, gave me confidence to continue. At least he would hit the swollen Wadi first and I could stop in time from being washed away.

Fortunately, we encountered no such overflowing Wadis that night. But by the next day, drivers were not so fortunate. The road between Sde Boker and Mitzpe Ramon was flooded in many places, and in one case the rains had washed away a portion of the highway and completely crushed the guard rail at that point in the road. Several drivers were washed away and killed in the floods, and at least one driver had to be rescued from his flood-stranded truck by helicopter.

 

 A cloud to ground lightning strike develops over Machtesh Ramon

 The lightning illuminates the clouds and far side of the Machtesh

Climax of the stroke. The river that drains the Machtesh can be seen reflecting the stroke's light.

This cloud to cloud stroke illuminates the north face of the crater:

  

 

Stroke climax

The storm developed just 3 days after a national day of fasting and prayer to appeal to the Almighty to bring rain to a drought parched Israel.

A Winter Storm Blows into Mitzpe Ramon - 2/3/2010

A winter storm blows in to Mitzpe Ramon from the North

As Jerusalem made preparations for a possible snow storm, a winter storm blew into Mitzpe Ramon from the North. Dark clouds were accompanied by northerly winds gusting up to 17 MPH by 4:15PM. Footing at the crater's rim was hard to maintain in the strongly blowing wind. Weather forecasts included the possibility of snow, which occurs only about once every two years in the crater. By 4:40PM a cold, light drizzle had begun to fall.

Tourists huddle against the wind and cold as a winter storm descends on Machtesh Ramon

I saw a herd of Ibex making its way back to the crater as the sun set and the wind picked up.


A herd of Ibex heads for home as a storm brews

At 4:15 PM, these were the weather conditions:

Overcast with light, cold drizzle falling

Windy, with gusts to 17 MPH

Winter storm brewing

Snow forecast for tonight

Temp: 47.8 F
Wind chill: 43 F
Humidity: 67 %
Heat index: 47 F
Dew point: 37 F
Wind max: 17 mph
Wind avg: 11 mph
Wind direction: NW


9:00 PM Update: The threat of snow seems to have passed. The weather continues very cold with wind chill near freezing. This is the coldest it has been in Mitzpe Ramon since we arrived in mid-December.

Overcast

Very cold

Windy, with gusts to 20 MPH

Temp: 43 F
Wind chill: 34 F
Humidity: 86 %
Heat index: 43 F
Dew point: 39 F
Wind max: 20 mph
Wind avg: 14 mph
Wind direction: NW
 

Today's Weather - 2/3/10

10:15 AM

Partly Cloudy

Windy

Winter storm brewing

Snow forecast for tonight

Temp: 50 F
Wind chill: 47 F
Humidity: 74 %
Heat index: 50 F
Dew point: 44 F
Wind max: 8 mph
Wind avg: 2.7 mph
Wind direction: NW

  

 

A winter storm blows into Mitzpe Ramon from the North