Saudi Gazette report

JEDDAH — The CEO of the National Center of Meteorology (NCM) Ayman Bin Salem Ghulam said that the center is following around the clock the impact of the potential rain situation in some regions of the Kingdom due to the indirect effect of the Tropical Cyclone Shaheen.

He urged the public to take meteorological information only from its official sources.

Ghulam said that the center is making full coordination with all the concerned sectors with regard to dealing with the inclement weather conditions after Cyclone Shaheen slammed into Oman on Sunday with ferocious winds and heavy rain, flooding streets, prompting evacuations from coastal areas and suspending some flights to and from the capital Muscat.

“The center is making the necessary coordination in accordance with the early warning mechanism to provide accurate reports to the beneficiaries to take the necessary precautionary measures,” he said while addressing a meeting of the Crisis and Disasters Committee at the headquarters of the Weather and Climate Forecasting Department here on Monday.

“The rush to publish reports and analysis related to weather through social networking sites leads to creating confusion and embarrassment among members of the society, and it does not help the concerned authorities to communicate their messages to the beneficiaries in the proper manner,” he said, while stressing that the application of the meteorological system will curtail this phenomenon.

The center had earlier warned that the Kingdom’s atmosphere is affected by an air depression that could lead to thunderstorms in some regions of the Kingdom due to Shaheen. The thunderstorms will often be accompanied by cold showers and dusty downburst that can reach speeds of more than 55 km per hour.

The Civil Defense authorities called for caution in several regions of the Kingdom from Monday to Friday in expectation of high winds and possible flooding.

It urged the public to stay away from places witnessing torrential and flooding, as well as to abide by the instructions issued by the Civil Defense through various media outlets and social networking sites so as to ensure their safety.