18 killed as Jordan flash flood sweeps away students

At least 18 people died and 35 were injured in an area near the Dead Sea, in the west of Jordan, as a result of flooding caused by torrential rains in the country on Thursday, according to the Jordanian Department of Civil Defence.

The death toll could still increase as a number of people are missing, including students who were riding on a bus during a school trip which was washed away by torrential floods, the statement said.

The official news agency Petra said that rescue work continues to remove the 43 students and teachers who were on the bus in the area of the hot springs of Al Zahra, between Wadi Mujib and Wadi Zerka, on the shores of the Dead Sea, Efe reported.

So far, it has not been specified whether all the fatalities counted are those aboard the damaged school vehicle.

The Civil Defense said they have been able to rescue ten of the students from the bus so far and pointed out that the torrential rains could persist.

Regarding the accident, the Jordanian Ministry of Education indicated in a statement, that they are going to open an official investigation of what happened and pointed out that "the school did not have permission to travel" through the Dead Sea area.

--IANS

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