Nearly 2,000 people have been evacuated and two have been killed by flooding in Jordan, officials have confirmed. The fatalities, a Belgian woman and her son, according to the Belgian foreign ministry, occurred after flash floods hit the Shoubak region of Jordan, about 200km south of Amman.
Shoubak is home to Petra, a destination that draws around a million visitors every year thanks to its well-known archaeological treasures, including the Al-Khazneh or “Treasury” tomb, a UNESCO-recognised World Heritage site. It was there that heavy rains brought sudden inundations on Sunday 4 May 2025, forcing people to seek shelter and await evacuation at the attraction’s entrance.
FLOOD: A powerful flood has swept through Jordan’s ancient city of Petra, submerging the iconic archaeological site and forcing the evacuation of nearly 1,800 tourists. Official reports confirm three fatalities, including one Belgian national. pic.twitter.com/EuVMzlLhOB
— @amuse (@amuse) May 6, 2025
Missing overnight
The situation was shown in footage published by the Jordanian Meteorological Institute. The clips revealed water freefalling down sandstone rock faces and surging through ancient tracks. Crowds of people can be seen hurrying to the tomb entrance for assistance. The once-lost city believed to have been created by Nabateans who were skilled in dams, cisterns and water management, is prone to flooding and suffered heavy rains that led to evacuations in 2022.
This time an emergency response plan kicked in, said Yazan Mahadin, Commissioner of the Petra Development and Tourism Region Authority (PDTRA). Nonetheless, the woman and her three children were all missing overnight, Belga news agency reports. Rescue teams scoured the area and discovered the bodies of one child and the mother, who left behind two surviving children, according to national security forces.
The victims were “found after several hours of searching in difficult weather and terrain conditions,” a statement said. The family had been in a group of tourists participating in what Ma’an governor, Hassan al-Jabur, described to Al-Mamlaka TV as an “adventure trip.” They were not accompanied by an official guide. 14 Czech nationals were also part of the tour and escaped unharmed.
Video of flash floods in iconic #Petra in Jordan today, a world heritage site. Tourists have been evacuated, and a number of casualties reported in area: pic.twitter.com/kJIzQ6Paqn
— Joyce Karam (@Joyce_Karam) December 26, 2022
Investigation ongoing
The FPS Foreign Affairs confirmed the news on 5 May and said: “We are aware of this case and regret the death of our two fellow citizens.” Belgian officials are “following up this case closely together with our embassy in Amman. As this concerns individual cases, we cannot provide any further information,” the public service went on. According to Petra, an investigation into the exact circumstances of the deaths is ongoing.
Repairs have taken place and the attraction, one of the Seven Wonders of the World, is already open again to the public, Mahadin has confirmed, adding that visitor and local resident safety are the authorities’ top priority.
