Saudi Arabia braces for intense cold weather, snowfall, and heavy rains

Dubai: Saudi Arabia’s National Centre of Meteorology (NMC) has forecast a drop in temperatures and the possibility of snowfall in northern regions, including Tabuk, Al Jouf, and Northern Borders, during the current mid-winter school vacation.

A statement on the NMC’s X account said the Kingdom can also expect moderate to heavy rains, accompanied by dust-raising winds, across most regions, including Tabuk, Mecca, Medina, Al Jouf, Northern Borders, Hail, Al Qassim, Riyadh, Eastern Province, and Al Baha.

The cold weather is expected to continue, with temperatures continuing to fall in the northern and central regions of Saudi Arabia, including Riyadh and Madinah.

The NMC also warned of fog formation during the night and early morning in parts of the Kingdom, including Tabuk, Al Jouf, Northern Borders, Hail, Al Qassim, Riyadh, Eastern Province, and the highlands of Asir, Jazan, Al Baha, and Mecca.

Aqeel Al Aqeel, a weather analyst with the Meteorology Department, warned that some northern regions could see temperatures drop below zero, while Riyadh may reach lows of 2 degrees Celsius over the next two days. “In the suburbs of Riyadh and Madinah, temperatures may also dip to 2 degrees Celsius,” he said.

He noted that the coming week will feature significant weather fluctuations, including heavy rainfall and snowfall, particularly in the highlands of Tabuk and the far northern areas of the Northern Borders Region.

The NMC has revealed that the most intense cold wave the country has ever experienced occurred in January 1992, when temperatures plummeted to a record low of -9.3°C at its Hail station. The seven-day cold spell, which saw an average temperature of -4.4°C, is still the lowest on record.

The NMC highlighted that, historically, the Hail and Al Qurayyat stations have recorded the coldest temperatures in the country between 1985 and 2023.