16:00

A cut-off upper-level low over Turkey, along with a Red Sea Trough, caused the formation of this beautiful waterspout in northern Israel. Looking W from Nahariya, photograph courtesy of Rosse.

A very prolonged storm system affected Israel, with widespread rain, hail and extensive thunderstorm activity.

January 8, 2006

16:33
Thunderstorm (cumulonimbus cloud), looking W over Netanya. Photograph courtesy of Barnea.

16:35-16:48
Another thunderstorm beautifully lit be the setting sun. Looking NW from Ra'anana, photographs courtesy of Adi Gensher.

January 10, 2006

23:02
Lightning over the southern Gush-Dan metropolitan area. Looking W from Neve-Ilan in the western Judean Mountains. The color differences are due to different aperture settings. The third picture is a crop of the second.

January 11, 2006

13:54
A huge thunderstorm over the Haifa bay with a visible rain core. Photographs courtesy of Rafi from Nesher.

16:15
Mammatus under the anvil of a cumulonimbus. Looking W from Netanya, photographs courtesy of Barnea.

23:25
The remains of a massive hail storm that struck the town of Shlomi in northern Israel 6 hours before the photograph was taken. Hail accumulated to 40 cm in some places. Photographs courtesy of Abigail Smal.

Extreme amounts of rain fell in a very short time in several places in Israel, causing many flash floods. 120-140 mm fell in Jerusalem and the surrounding Judean Mountains in 8 hours, 450% of the entire monthly average. The upper Soreq stream in Ha'arazim Valley west of Jerusalem is fed by many streams, which are noramlly dry. With this amount of rain the streams flooded and the valley became a gushing river of mud and water. The valley ends in a dam, which overflows once every year or two and always in winter. On April 2 2006 The reservoir rose 9 meters in 6 hours, an unprecedented rise, and overflowed for the first time this year. The Soreq stream was still flowing 24 hours after the event.

09:42-09:56
The normally dry upper Soreq stream in Ha'arazim Valley, west of Jerusalem.

An F1/F2 tornado struck the western Galilee in north-western Israel, causing widespread damage and injuring at least 70 people in the villages of Yarca, Jedeidah, Julees and Kfar Yaseef. This is perhaps the strongest and definately the most documented tornado in Israel. The supercell developed over the Mediterranean Sea and entered Israel a little bit north of Haifa. Apart from the tornado large hail was reported and severely damaged crops in many areas of north-western Israel.

17:15
The supercell as it entered the coast of northern Israel. Note the overshooting-top extending at least two kilometers above the tropopause. Looking N from Netanya, some 130 km away. The storm was also seen from 180 km away. Photograph courtesy of Barnea.

17:17
Large hail under the supercell, measuring at least 4 cm in diameter, pounding Kibbutz Eilon. Photograph courtesy of Almog Schneider.

17:41
The back (western) end of the supercell viewed from Merchavia, near Afula, about 60 km away. Looking N. Beautiful storm structure. Photograph courtesy of Asaf Porat.

17:49
The supercell viewed from Afula, looking N. The photos are 7 minutes apart. Photographs courtesy of Ido Rippin.

17:25-17:45
The tornado in Yarca, definately at the top of F1 rating on the Fujita scale, and perhaps even a low F2. Photograph courtesy of Abu-Chaia Jamil.

The tornado as viewed from Tuval. Photographs courtesy of Neil Merser.

Damaged trees near Jedeidah, four days after the tornado. Photographs courtesy of Oron Bar-Ilan.



For more tornado photos, videos and damage, visit the following external links (in Arabic and Hebrew):
Panet #1
Panet #2
Ynet

Under the influence of a Red Sea trough and upper-level low over southern Israel, a thunderstorm developed in the southern Judean Mountains, and more thunderstorms developed around Eilat. This was the first, and only, incident of spring tropical-like severe weather in Israel this season.

15:38
Thunderstorm in the southern Judean Mountains. Looking S from Mevasseret.