Natural catastrophes

10.6, rough weather

Kuwait: shipping was severely restricted for three days due to bad weather, and the local forecasters were predicting rough weather for the next seven to eight days. Over 40 vessels, mostly tankers, were caught in Kuwaiti waters. Wind speeds of up to 30 knots were reported in the northern Persian Gulf by several regional met offices; and this, along with poor visibility caused by air-borne dust, stopped Kuwaiti shipping. Vessels waited for the weather to improve, which normally happens around midnight, which allowed some shipping movements, however, daybreak halted operations again. The areas of Shuwaikh and Shuwaiba were the worst affected.