Temperatures jumped across Israel on Friday, with some locations recording an increase of 20 degrees Celsius (68 degrees Fahrenheit) over the previous week.
Last week saw severe weather hit the country, with snowstorms in Jerusalem and other areas. "Last week a situation occurred in the atmosphere that allowed extremely cold air originating in Russia to arrive east of the Mediterranean Sea," said Tsach Waxman of the Meteo-Tech meteorological service. "The air arriving today is making its way from the Sahara Desert, and is bringing hot weather."
Temperatures in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, and Haifa were 28, 18, and 22 degrees Celsius on Friday. The previous week they were nine, zero, and eight degrees.
According to Waxman, such disparate temperatures are atypical in February. "This is a most extreme situation," he said.
Surfers took advantage of the unusual warmth at Tel Aviv's Gordon Beach. Local beachgoers said they were pleasantly surprised by the summery weather occurring in the winter.
The heat caused the Tel Aviv Marathon to be halted shortlyafter 10 AM. By that time, a 30-year-old runner had lost consciousness and was taken to the hospital in critical condition.
Another man collapsed from heatstroke about an hour later. 90 other people required medical treatment during the marathon. After temperatures rose, runners were instructed to walk the remaining distance.