Storms to pound Middle East with rain, snow into Friday
The ancient city of Petra was recently hit by rare flash floods, as tourists attempted to escape the fash moving waters. Now, archaeologists are examining the damage.
A pair of storm systems will bring the risk of rain and snow to parts of the Middle East through Friday.
One storm will move across Turkey with rain and snow, while another unleashes heavy rain and thunderstorms from Saudi Arabia into Kuwait, Iraq and Iran.
A prolonged snow event is expected to last through the day on Friday across northeastern Turkey, where some higher-elevation locations can expect more than 30 cm (12 inches) of snowfall.
Snowfall of 8-15 cm (3-6 inches) will be possible from Sivas to Erzincan and Erzurum by Friday night, causing travel disruptions.
Farther south, heavy rain will fall across the lower elevations of southern Turkey, bringing the risk for flooding and travel disruptions.
Locations at risk for flooding through Friday include Antalya, Mersin, Adana, Gaziantep and Batman.
This same storm system will bring daily rainfall to Lebanon, Syria and northern Iraq. While flooding will not be a widespread concern, localized flooding will be possible each day through Friday.
Conditions will improve across eastern Turkey this weekend, while another storm system brings rain to western parts of the country.
A second storm system will bring a more widespread risk for flooding from parts of Saudi Arabia into southwestern Iran through Friday.
Thunderstorms will rumble across western and central Saudi Arabia on Thursday, bringing the risk of flash flooding, damaging winds and hail to areas from Mecca to Buraydah and Hafar Al Batin. These storms are expected to remain north of Riyadh.
Farther north and east, the threat will be mainly flooding and mudslides as downpours drench southern Iraq, Kuwait and southwestern Iran.
The hardest-hit areas can expect rainfall of 25-75 mm (1-3 inches) with an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 125 mm (5 inches).
This magnitude of rainfall can quickly cause flash flooding capable of washing away automobiles and damaging homes and businesses.
Travel will be impacted, and some roadways may be closed for a prolonged period due to rapidly rising floodwaters.
A period of dry weather is forecast across the Arabian Peninsula and Iran this weekend.
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