June 2, 2010

  • Not Another Cyclone!

    I was just checking my mail right now when this message caught my eye:

    Tropical Storm Warning PHET

    The email came from www.tropicalstormrisk.com and I've been subscribing to their cyclone warnings for this region ever since Gonu struck in 2007. It says that Nizwa has a 25% chance of being hit by a Category 1 storm (named "Phet") within 72 hours! I've just checked their website and the projected path at the moment looks like this.

    Phet according to Tropicalstormrisk

    Which is good news for Oman, I suppose. But I remember well when Gonu first appeared over the Indian Ocean back in 2007. It was first projected to hit India, but then it made a 180 degree turn and headed for Oman (Masirah and Sur, at first). And then finally, it followed the Omani coastline northwards and made landfall over Muscat! So, even if Phet is expected to veer off to the right and head for Pakistan, you never know with these cyclones!

    I've also checked the US Navy Typhoon warning site: http://www.usno.navy.mil/JTWC. This is their info.

    Phet according to US Navy Typhoon Warning Centre

    They are expecting gusts of up to 105 knots. We're in for some bad weather here in Fujairah as well, I'm sure, with that kind of storm over the Indian Ocean.