DUBAI(RAHNUMA): A powerful storm system is sweeping across Saudi Arabia and the Gulf, bringing heavy rain, violent winds and dust storms, with forecasters warning of dangerous conditions on land and at sea until the end of the week.
Saudi authorities say thunderstorms on Wednesday and Thursday will be accompanied by winds in excess of 60 kph (37 mph), reducing visibility and churning up high waves along coastal areas.
“This may lead to near or complete loss of horizontal visibility, as well as waves along coastal areas that could exceed 2.5 meters,” said the Kingdom’s National Center for Meteorology on their website on Wednesday.
According to regional forecast site Arabia Weather, the storm is being driven by a deep low-pressure system interacting with cold upper-level air and warm, moisture-laden currents from the south.
In the UAE, heavy rain has already fallen for several days, with parts of Abu Dhabi and Ajman recording near-annual rainfall totals within a short period of time.
The UAE’s National Center of Meteorology said the weather system was expected to peak late Thursday into Friday, bringing intense rain, thunderstorms and strong winds.
The NCM has warned of localized flooding and urged residents to avoid valleys and flood-prone areas, while emergency agencies say they are closely monitoring the situation.
Jason Nicholls, lead international forecaster for AccuWeather, told local media that rain and thunderstorms will continue from eastern Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar and the UAE into eastern Oman until Friday. He said small tornadoes had already been reported on Saudi Arabia’s eastern coasts of Saudi Arabia, and conditions that could cause more such events remained.
Threat to shipping in Strait of Hormuz
Meteorologists at Arabia Weather also raised concerns about conditions in the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s key energy corridors and the focal point of the ongoing conflict in Iran.
They warned “severe and exceptional thunderstorms” are expected to affect the strait, with strong winds and high waves likely to disrupt maritime traffic until at least Thursday.
“These powerful thunderstorms could disrupt maritime traffic in the strait due to strong winds and high waves from Monday until next Thursday,” Arabia Weather forecasters said on Monday.
“Therefore, sailors and companies are advised to take the highest levels of caution to avoid risks in the coming days.”
Sina Toossi, a senior fellow at the Center for International Policy in Washington, said the weather could affect air operations, intelligence and targeting, and disrupt logistics, and in a post on X advised a “short term operational pause for the US.”
