RIYADH: A severe sandstorm lashed Riyadh yesterday, spreading an orange-color blanket of dust that led to over 70 road accidents, traffic snarls and cancellation of scheduled luncheon parties.
Airport Director Saad Al-Tasan said that all air traffic at King Khalid International Airport was halted for over three hours because of the storm, and later the airport was only allowing departures.
The airport signal tower diverted all incoming flights to the King Fahd International Airport in Dammam and King Abdul Aziz Airport in Jeddah. Airport operations were completely shut between 11 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. Later the Dammam airport was closed to all traffic as the storm spread eastward to the Arabian Gulf.
Riyadh Traffic Department spokesman Maj. Ali Al-Alwan said more than 70 accidents were reported in the capital during the first three hours due to near-zero visibility. Also, people could not go to luncheon parties and outdoor gatherings. Banquet Sales Manager at Riyadh InterContinental Hotel Abdul Aziz told Arab News that hosts called off outdoor parties and few invitees turned up for the luncheon.
Government schools were closed early yesterday due to the timely warning issued by the Presidency of Meteorology and Environment Protection (PME) through text messages.
The messages in Arabic warned of low visibility due to the widespread dust during the day, especially in the central and eastern parts of the country accompanied by a decrease in temperature at night.
The storm was attributed to changing weather conditions.
A PME spokesman told Arab News that the storm originated in the central Qassim province.
In neighboring Kuwait, oil exports were restarted after a brief halt due to the storm and poor weather. Sources in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates said their Gulf export operations were not affected.
Earlier, spokesman of oil refiner Kuwait National Petroleum Co said the OPEC oil producer had halted oil exports of over two million barrels per day after the storm hit the emirate.
Kuwait exports about 2.1 million barrels per day of combined crude and oil products. Most exports go to Asia.
At Saudi Arabia’s main crude export terminal in Ras Tanura weather was fine and the export flow was uninterrupted, a shipping source said.
“Loading and shipping are going smoothly,” he said.
