People treat an injured student at a local hospital near the Dead Sea area of Jordan Oct. 25, 2018. At least 18 people died, dozens went missing and 34 were rescued by Thursday evening in flash floods in Jordan's hot springs area near the Dead Sea as the country witnessed heavy rain. (Xinhua/Mohammad Abu Ghosh)
AMMAN, Oct. 25 (Xinhua) -- At least 18 people died, dozens went missing and 34 were rescued by Thursday evening in flash floods in Jordan's hot springs area near the Dead Sea as the country witnessed heavy rain.
Majority of those killed, rescued and reported missing were students on a school trip to the Zara Maeen hot springs area, according to the Civil Defence Department (CDD), which said they were from a private school in Amman.
A statement by the Prime Ministry indicated that the school received an approval to take the students to a trip to Azraq, but the school did not abide by the approval and took the students to the Dead Sea area.
Personnel from several agencies, rescue helicopters and boats, marine divers and swimmers took part in the ongoing search.
The CDD said in the statement emailed to Xinhua that the rescue operations were ongoing as dozens were still missing.
Jordanian Prime Minister Omar Razzaz oversaw the rescue operations and instructed state agencies to provide all needed assistance to ensure the safety of the students.
Jordan's King Abdullah II of Jordan cancelled his trip to Bahrain that was scheduled for Friday after the incident to follow up on the situation.
