Makkah set for more heavy rains as storms lash holy city

RIYADH: Heavy rains, strong winds and thunderstorms lashed Makkah, Madinah and other regions on Thursday.

While the change in weather provided some relief from the scorching heat, a video shared on social media showed the shocking scenes as a storm tore through the holy city of Madinah, flooding cars, damaging buildings and sweeping people off their feet.

The National Center for Meteorology on Friday issued a weather warning and said moderate to heavy rainfall for the Makkah region — including Taif, Maysan, Adham, Al-Kamil, Al-Aradiyat, Al-Layth and Al-Qunfudah — was set to remain until Tuesday.

The Civil Defense urged people to take caution and avoid going to valleys or other low-lying areas that are prone to flooding.

The meteorology center said that parts of Najran, Jazan, Aseer, Al-Baha, Makkah and Madinah might experience dust-stirring winds, moderate to heavy rain and hailstorms, while the Riyadh, Qassim, Hail and Tabuk regions were likely to see only light drizzle to moderate rain.

Northern, central and southern regions will be hit by winds of 15-45 kph from the Red Sea, where waves could reach heights of up to 2 meters, the forecasters said.

In the Arabian Gulf, the winds will blow southeasterly to southwesterly, at speeds of up to 25 kph, though the sea will remain mostly calm.