In contrast, "Carmel" is a light breeze: the great storms in the history of Israel

Rain that lasted almost 20 hours in a row, huge waves that caused ships to run aground, snow on the coastal plain and damage of a billion shekels - the rising storm became the first in the country's history to be officially named, but over the years there have been much more powerful weather events.

This is what it looks like

Yoav Itiel

20/12/2021

Monday, 20 December 2021, 13:36 Updated: 14:24

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In the video: The scene of the tree collapsing in Netanya and the weather storm across the country (Photo: MDA operational documentation, Ziv Levy, Nature and Parks Authority, and Idan Yitzhakian / RTG)

The "Carmel" storm is the first Israeli storm to receive European branding, but even here it was harder. "Every storm has its own characteristics," says Walla! Dr. Noam Halfon of the Meteorological Service, “There are particularly cold, or with winds, waves. It is raining and some are bringing snow. "The

elders of the country still remember the end of the winter of 1950, when the most extreme event ever recorded in Israel took place. Under Jordanian control, a synagogue ceiling collapsed and several people present were buried beneath it. In addition, extensive damage to agriculture and transportation was reported. 11 February.

During the storm, snow fell all over the country, except the Arava and the southern Negev.

It began on February 4 in the north and spread south: in the morning the snow had already reached the northern valleys, and at night it began to pile up on the coastal plain as well.

The height of the snow reached up to 55 cm in Acre and 70 cm in the Beit Hakerem neighborhood of Jerusalem. At the airport in Haifa Bay, 17 cm and 10-15 cm were measured in the central and southern coastal plain and in the valleys, including the Sea of ​​Galilee and the Beit She'an Valley. The snow also fell in large parts of the Negev and 19 cm were measured in Revivim.

The only areas where it did not snow were the Arava and the southern Negev.

In terms of snow cover it was an unprecedented extreme event.

The only incident approaching it to some extent is the incident that occurred about a week earlier on January 27th.

More on Walla!

Rain, winds, floods, and a chance of snow on the peaks in the north: Hurricane "Carmel" is already here

To the full article

Snow in Haifa, 1950 (Photo: Official Website, Wikipedia)

A year later, the most extreme rain event ever recorded in Israel took place. According to Meteorological Service measurements, 500-400 millimeters of rain and more fell in the coastal plain, in an unprecedented storm. For 11 consecutive days, the prolonged storm raged in Israel, during which almost every day at least in some areas of the country large amounts of rain were recorded. The daily record amount was measured exactly today seventy years ago, on December 20, 1951 in Rishon Lezion, where 174 mm were measured.

Along with the large amount, a peak was set during this storm during the continuous rainfall.

On December 21, 1951, the rain registrar in the Tel Aviv Kirya recorded rain for 19 hours and 20 minutes in a row.

The heavy rains caused heavy flooding, disrupted transportation and heavy damage to property and even lives.

The situation of the residents of the neighborhoods of South Tel Aviv was particularly serious, who had to evacuate their homes both at the beginning of the rains and immediately after returning to their homes, due to another tide of Nahal Ayalon towards the end of the storm.

Beyond the amount and duration of rains, the storm also excelled in the strong winds that reached Mount Canaan to an average speed of 110 km / h and an upper gust of 140 km / h, high waves that caused ships to run aground and cold that led to snow in the northern mountains during some storms.

Snow in Netanya, 1950 (Photo: Official website, from Wikipedia)

Dr. Halfon refers to other events in the 1950s. At the end of December 1954, heavy floods were seen in Nahal Ayalon as a result of a two-day rainfall of 250 mm or more in Gush Dan, or in November 1955, a rainy day with amounts of more than 200 m from measured at different stations in the East West Samaria. "they created a deadly floods along the Yarkon," he notes.

according listings hundred years ago, on December 9, 1921 decreased Carmel Haifa Technion 245 mm and 272 mm in Hadar Hacarmel, but the tests conducted In retrospect, the Meteorological Service of Israel raises doubts about the measurements at the Technion.

An unprecedented storm.

Excavation of drainage ditches in the transit camp, 1951 (Photo: official website, Wikipedia)

In 1968 another shaky storm hit the country.

Between January 14 and 15, heavy snow began to fall in the mountains, reaching a height of 35-30 cm in the north and center. 32 cm measured at the meteorological station in central Jerusalem.

Snow also fell in the Negev Mountains and lower areas: in Carmel, in the northern Negev, including light snow in Be'er Sheva, the Lower Galilee and even in the northern valleys and the northern coastal plain.

The heavy snow caused damage such as paralyzing transportation to Jerusalem, disconnecting settlements in the Galilee, tearing power cables and collapsing trees.

In Jordan and Lebanon, this snowstorm claimed the lives of 52 people.

Despite the thickness of the snow, it did not survive long on the ground due to a warming that occurred as early as January 16 and caused a shift from snowfall to rain.

The rain caused the snow to melt quickly on the ground and a relatively quick return to routine, but also to flood buildings.

Excess rainfall.

Soldiers in Safed during the storm in 2013 (Photo: Gillis)

In 1991, Sufa paralyzed Ayalon routes for a day. The recent past is remembered in 2013, when between December 12 and 14, a particularly cold and heavy rainfall system hit the country and snow at a depth of about half a meter or more piled up on the peaks of the northern and central mountains. In the northern and central mountains, from a height of about 500 meters, heavy snow fell that accumulated on the peaks to half a meter and more. Half a meter of snow was also reported in the higher neighborhoods of Jerusalem and in the higher localities in the Jerusalem Corridor. In Beit Jan and the peaks of Samaria, snow approaching a height of one meter was reported. In the high places and northern slopes the snow survived on the ground for more than a week and in some places even more than two weeks.

Both the amount of snow and the duration of its survival on the ground were extremely unusual compared to the entire winter season, and even more so in relation to the first half of December, in which no snowfall of this magnitude occurred or close since the beginning of measurements in Jerusalem in the mid-19th century. Daily maximum temperatures reached 3-1 degrees in the mountains and 10-8 on the coastal plain, values ​​unprecedentedly low for December. Emergency and rescue authorities needed the help of the IDF, which operated medical corps APCs as a groundbreaking force for the needy on roads that were blocked due to heavy snow. Property damage at the end of 2013 was estimated at NIS 1 billion.

"This storm is remembered because of the collapse of the concept that when it is still relatively hot, heavy snow cannot fall," explains Dr. Halfon.

Until then there was no record of heavy snow events in the first half of December.

But it was the warm sea that caused high amounts of precipitation and strong snowfalls and it did not prevent the temperatures from cooling to values ​​suitable for snow.

"This surprised everyone, and the authorities, who were not properly prepared, found themselves dealing with a swarm of vehicles stuck on their way to Jerusalem, with those trapped in houses in Safed and with other catastrophes that demanded the Home Front Command's call for help."

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