Kibbutz Ein Carmel, near Haifa, recorded more than seven inches of rainfall since the powerful storm reached the region
Nir Hasson, Yair Foldes, Deiaa Haj Yahia, Adi Hashmonai
and ReutersDecember 11, 2025
Winter storm Byron continued to sweep through Israel and the Gaza Strip on Thursday, bringing with it large amounts of rain that caused flooding across the region.
The areas in Israel hit hardest on Thursday morning were the Haifa and Mount Carmel region, with the Tel Aviv and central Israel region taking the brunt of the storm in the early afternoon hours. Additionally, snow began to fall on the top of Mt. Hermon.
The areas in Israel hit hardest on Thursday morning were the Haifa and Mount Carmel region, with the Tel Aviv and central Israel region taking the brunt of the storm in the early afternoon hours. Additionally, snow began to fall on the top of Mt. Hermon.’
In Gaza, the downpour flooded hundreds of tents sheltering families displaced by the war, with the local health ministry saying a baby girl died due to exposure after her family’s tent was flooded.
“When we woke up, we found the rain over her and the wind on her, and the girl died of cold suddenly,” Hejar Abu Jazar, the mother of the eight-month-old Rahaf, told Reuters.
In the city of Rishon Letzion, south of Tel Aviv, some 40 millimeters (1.57 inches) of rain were measured within just a few hours. Two young girls were lightly injured when a tree fell in a schoolyard within the city. They were taken to Shamir Medical Center.
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A man examines the flooding at an underground parking garage in Yavneh, on Thursday.
A man examines the flooding at an underground parking garage in Yavneh, on Thursday. Credit: Ilan Assayag
Similar amounts of rain fell in the surrounding cities of Yavneh, Rehovot, Be’er Yaakov and Nes Tziona. In Yavneh, firefighters and other rescue workers assisted 14 drivers whose vehicles were caught in the flooding at eight different scenes.
Significant floods were also recorded in the Arab city of Baka al-Garbiyeh, located along the Green Line, which separates Israel and the West Bank.
Many of the city’s streets were flooded, leaving cars and their drivers stranded. One of the stranded drivers escaped to the roof of his car, from where he was subsequently rescued. Traffic in the Baka’s main streets was almost completely paralyzed, causing traffic jams that continued even when the rain died down.’
The Israel Meteorological Service said that Kibbutz Ein Carmel had the most rainfall in Israel since Byron arrived in the region, with 193 mm (7.59 inches) – including 57 mm (2.24 inches) between Wednesday night and Thursday morning.