Ramallah: The Jordanian Civil Defence Department (CDD) has been using early warning siren system twice a day, in the morning and evening, to transmit warning messages to the public, urging Jordanians to stay indoors and wait out the snowstorm.
The CDD sounded the sirens on Tuesday evening at 6pm and Wednesday morning to warn the public regarding the ice formation. Since severe winter conditions can hit suddenly, the department said that the siren system will remain in use to update the public on the weather conditions.
The Jordanian Meteorological Department announced that temperatures during the night will drop below zero across the country.
“A spell of freezing temperatures will start once rain and snowfall stop. Roadway icing is expected to start today’s evening and traffic movement will be difficult as road icing will continue,” Mohammad Samawi, Director of the Jordan Meteorological Department told the Jordan Times. He confirmed that ice roads will continue forming until the end of the week.
Further precautionary instructions by the Jordanian authorities will depend on how severe the snowstorm is. Due to the severity of the weather conditions the number of road accidents doubled during the snowstorm and three deaths have so far been reported around the kingdom.
Jordanian Prime Minister Abdullah Al Nsour decided to delay the start of the working hours at the public departments and banks to 10am where public departments in several Jordanian governorates, including Karak, Ma’an and Al Tafilah will be off for the rest of the week.
