Sea of Galilee Rises Just One Centimeter After Record Weekend Rains
Israel's Water Authority says the lake stands 39 centimeters lower than a year ago, though it has been lower in recent winters.
See where this is ›TIBERIAS, Israel —
The record rain that soaked central and northern Israel over the weekend barely moved the Sea of Galilee. The lake, called the Kinneret in Israel, rose only 1 centimeter, about four-tenths of an inch, and stood at 213.70 meters below sea level on Sunday, Nov. 8, The Jerusalem Post reported.
See where this is ›That is 39 centimeters, about 15 inches, lower than at the same time last year. About 20 millimeters of rain fell over the lake itself, and the Jordan River was flowing into it at 6 cubic meters per second, the paper said.
“The effect of the rain on the river is still small to negligible,” said Itay Dudi, spokesperson for Israel's Water Authority. He said three winters in the past decade had worse figures, and that exactly 10 years ago the lake stood just 3 centimeters higher than it does now.
The lake has been in worse shape before. On the same date in 2017 it was 58 centimeters lower than today, and in 2018 it was 94 centimeters lower, according to the report.
The water dropped 10 centimeters in September. An algal bloom shut Israel's desalination plants for nearly two weeks in early September, and 3.3 million cubic meters were drawn from the lake over 10 days to make up the shortfall. On Sept. 9 the lake reached 213.50 meters below sea level, its lowest for that date since 2018. All six desalination plants were running again by Sept. 10.
The Sea of Galilee, on whose shores Jesus called His first disciples and taught the multitudes, is fed by the Jordan River, and its level is watched closely each winter as the rains come.
