VENICE, Israel – A cloudburst exploded over the port city of Ashkelon Monday morning, turning the city into a lake, flooding the hospital and leaving drivers trapped in their cars on city streets.
Damage was heavy, but no one was injured. A baby was among those rescued from waterlogged cars, and divers were seen swimming to reach motorists and passengers.
More than an inch of rain drenched the city within a few minutes, and even old-timers said they never had seen such a torrential downpour in such a short time. Navy police were called out to assist rescue crews.
Water flooded parts of Ashkelon’s Barzilai Hospital, reaching the emergency room, hallways and several wards. The cemetery also was flooded, and a major road in the city collapsed.
The port city already has received twice the normal amount of precipitation for this time of year and a quarter of the rainfall for the entire winter, which started only a couple of weeks ago.
The weather forecast is for the rain to taper off by tonight, but isolated showers will continue from the north to the northern Negev on Tuesday and early Wednesday.
Warnings remain for flash floods in the Dead Sea area.
By Thursday, fair skies and warmer temperatures will return.
Click to see video of rescuers riding boats in the city.