Sea of Galilee Fullest it’s Been in 16 Years

JERUSALEM, Israel – Fresh rain is continuing to fill up the Sea of Galilee and today it's the highest it's been in 16 years.

 The Israel Water Authority reported that the water level has been rising at a rate of 2.5 cm per day

 and it rose by about a foot between March 23 and April 14.

Right now, the lake is just 7.3 inches short of the “Upper Red Line.” If it reaches that, authorities may consider opening a dam to prevent flooding.

Israel’s Water Authority predicted last months that they would not need to open the Degania dam in the southern end of the lake unless the region experiences “exceptional” rain in the next weeks.

If there is one piece of good news in these troubled times, this is it: the Kinneret, the Sea of Galilee, is completely overflowing with water. This has not happened in 30 years!

An overflowing Sea of Galilee means happy Israelis, #coronavirus or not. pic.twitter.com/g8HznuIDEj

— Ofir Gendelman (@ofirgendelman) April 12, 2020

“The last two years were good, but expected dry periods are forecast for our region and we must prepare for it,” the authority’s director, Giora Shaham told Haaretz.

This winter saw an unusual amount of rain and more is expected.