page_title: 1996 Oman cyclone
section_title: Impact
hierarchical_section_title: 1996 Oman cyclone / Impact
caption_attribution_description: English: Map showing the location of the Gulf of Aden, located between Yemen and Somalia. Nearby bodies of water include the Indian Ocean, Red Sea, Arabian Sea, and the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait.
context_page_description: The 1996 Oman cyclone was a tenacious and deadly system that caused historic flooding in the southern Arabian Peninsula. It originated from a disturbance in the Gulf of Aden, the first such tropical cyclogenesis on record. After moving eastward, the system interacted with the monsoon trough and became a tropical storm on June 11. Later that day, it turned toward Oman and struck the country's southeast coast. It weakened over land, dissipating on June 12, although it continued to produce rainfall – heavy at times – over the next few days.
  Offshore Oman, the storm's rough waves disabled an oil tanker and damaged a fishing boat, killing one person in the latter incident. Striking Oman, the storm produced significant rainfall totals well above the monthly average, peaking at 234 mm in the Dhofar region. Strong winds where the storm moved ashore damaged buildings and the local water plant. The rains washed out roads and isolated villages, killing two people due to drowning in Al-Ghubra. However, the effects were more severe in Yemen, where the floods were considered the worst on record. The storm produced the heaviest rainfall in 70 years, reaching 189 mm in Ma'rib.
context_section_description: The precursor to the storm dropped heavy rainfall in Oman, reaching 29 mm (1.1 in) in Khaftawt on May 31. The storm later produced intense precipitation across the coast and desert regions of the country. Masirah recorded 48 mm (1.9 in) of rainfall over 36 hours, compared to the average monthly average of 1 mm (0.039 in), while Salalah reported 36 mm (1.4 in), or 600% of the average June rainfall. However, the heaviest rainfall occurred on June 11 and into the following day, when the system drew moisture into mountainous parts of the Dhofar region. A station called Jebel Ashor recorded 234 mm (9.2 in) over 48 hours, including 143 mm (5.6 in) on June 11. Farther north, heavy rainfall occurred in the Al Hajar Mountains, where 201 mm (7.9 in) was recorded, mostly over eight hours; there, 71.8 mm (2.83 in) of precipitation was recorded over two hours.
  Offshore the Arabian Peninsula, the cyclone produced rough waves that disabled an oil tanker; the crew was rescued by the Omani Coast Guard after being stranded for a few days. A fishing boat was damaged after being washed ashore near Ras Madrakah, killing one person in the crew of nine. Near where the storm moved ashore, the storm's strong winds heavily damaged the village of Ras Madrakah. Considered the worst storm in memory, the cyclone wrecked workshops and buildings, including damaging the roof of the desalination plant, leaving residents without water for several days. Strong winds of over 93 km/h (58 mph) knocked down 20 trees in Rima that were planted to provide shade for government buildings. Across the storm's track through Oman, the rains replenished water levels in aquifers, while also washing out roads and isolating villages. This lack of transportation prevented prompt repair work. The Jiddat al-Harasis desert was flooded for over a month due to the storm, killing two people due to drowning in Al-Ghubra. The floods provided grazing for the endangered oryx population, although many livestock were killed. Three airports in the country were closed due to floods up to four days.
  Damage was heaviest in Yemen, where the storm's remnants dropped the heaviest rainfall in 70 years. Ma'rib recorded 189 mm (7.4 in) of rainfall, and the capital Sana'a reported 164 mm (6.5 in) of precipitation. Widespread flooding affected much of Yemen, the worst on record for the country. Damage was heaviest in three governorates – Hadhramaut, Shabwah, and Ma'rib – with lesser effects in three other governorates. The waters washed away or damaged 1,068 km (664 mi) of roads and 21 bridges, including the primary road crossing Hadhramaut. Some of the damaged roads were built 2,000 years prior under the Roman Empire. Primary highways were damaged in 16 locations. Thousands of cars and other vehicles were inundated, necessitating boat travel to transport injured residents. About 2,300 m (7,500 ft) of power lines was cut. The floods washed away 113 power poles, and four main generators were affected, causing widespread outages. Storm debris contaminated also many drinking wells and damaged 1,357 water pumps damaged. About 80% of Shabwah Governorate lost water access, forcing some residents to drink from contaminated wadis, or formerly dry river beds. About one-third of gabions – structures to help with flood control – were damaged or destroyed, as were 634 dykes.
  Many Yemeni villages were isolated, and the entirety of Ahwar and Qaishan provinces were inaccessible within Abyan Governorate. The floods destroyed 1,820 houses, many of them washed away, and many others were damaged, leaving 22,842 families homeless. The storm washed away the topsoil or otherwise wrecked 42,800 ha (106,000 acres) of crop fields. The storm also knocked over 37,000 fruit trees and killed 13,000 livestock, accounting for about US$100 million in agriculture damage. About 70% of arable land in Shabwah Governorate was washed away. The floods littered about 25 km (16 mi) of irrigation canals with sand. Many of the houses and fields were built on wadis which were swept away when water levels rose. The floods also damaged or des
caption: Map of the territories surrounding the Gulf of Aden that were affected by the cyclone
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