DEAD SEA, Jordan (REUTERS) – Not lower than 18 people, primarily schoolchildren and teachers, have been killed on Thursday (Oct 25) by a flash flood all through a school outing near Jordan’s Lifeless Sea in certainly one of many worst disasters inside the kingdom in years, rescuers and hospital workers acknowledged.
Thirty-four people have been rescued in a severe operation involving police helicopters and plenty of of navy troops, police chief Brigadier-Regular Farid al Sharaa knowledgeable state television. Just a few of those rescued have been in a extreme scenario.
A number of these killed have been kids beneath 14.
Quite a lot of households picnicking inside the in model trip spot have been moreover among the many many lifeless and injured, rescuers acknowledged, with out giving a breakdown of numbers.
Tons of of households and members of the family converged on Shounah hospital a lot of kilometers (miles) from the resort area.
Household sobbed and seemed for particulars regarding the missing kids, a witness acknowledged.
The flooding occurred after heavy rainfall, the first such rains after the tip of the summer season season season.
Prime Minister Omar Razzaz acknowledged it appeared the varsity had broken legal guidelines by the ministry of education that forbade journeys to the Lifeless Sea on account of harmful local weather and pledged an investigation which may keep anyone found accountable for any wrongdoing accountable.
Razzaz acknowledged divers and civil defence search teams could possibly be conducting search operations deep contained within the Lifeless Sea all via the night.
A father of certainly one of many survivors acknowledged a bus with 37 schoolchildren and seven teachers had been on a go to to the resort area. They’ve been caught in a slender stream as sudden torrential rainstorm flooded the world.
“The children tried to flee the floods by going to the bus nonetheless its doorways have been closed,” acknowledged Abu Yousef knowledgeable reporters.
“The teachers tried to keep away from losing the children nonetheless the floods depth made it not potential,” he added saying the children have been swept to the shores of the Lifeless Sea, the underside degree on Earth.
King Abdullah cancelled a go to to Bahrain to adjust to the rescue operations, state media acknowledged.
Neighboring Israel despatched search-and-rescue helicopters to assist, an Israeli military assertion acknowledged, together with the crew dispatched at Amman’s request was engaged on the Jordanian facet of the Lifeless Sea.
Civil defence spokesman Captain Iyad al Omar knowledgeable Reuters the number of casualties was anticipated to rise. Rescue workers using flashlights have been wanting the cliffs near the shore of the Lifeless Sea the place our our bodies had been found.
There have been deadly incidents involving flash floods in Jordan beforehand and in 1963, 23 French vacationers have been swept away by flash floods as soon as they’ve been trapped inside the historic Petra metropolis.