UAE, Oman safe from effects of cyclone Biparjoy in Arabian Sea

A storm brewing in the Arabian Sea will not directly affect the UAE or Oman, the official meteorological authorities said in a statement.

‘Biparjoy’ has been classified as a category 1 tropical cyclone with a wind speed of up to 145 km/h, according to the UAE’s National Center of Meteorology (NCM).

It is currently 1,140 kilometers off the coast of neighboring Oman. It is moving north towards the central Arabian Sea, according to Oman Meteorology.

The seafront around the Omani coast has been forecasted for Wednesday as slight to moderate intensity.

According to predictions, the weather system will retain its fury for five days.

A similar weather system last impacted the two countries in 2021. Tropical storm Shaheen ravaged many parts of Oman and hit the UAE at a weakened rate.

‘Biparjoy,’ which is holding up the start of monsoon rains in India, is set to intensify into a severe storm in the Arabian Sea as it moves near the country’s west coast, where major ports and refineries sit.

The cyclone is now a severe storm and will continue to intensify and move northward over the next 24 hours, the India Meteorological Department said early Wednesday.

The storm currently lies 1,000 kilometers (621 miles) southwest of Mumbai and 1,370 kilometers south of Karachi in Pakistan, according to the India weather office.

Wind speeds may climb to 145 to 155 kilometers an hour by Friday and could even reach 170 kilometers an hour, equivalent to a Category 2 storm.