Navigation at Shuwaikh and Shuaiba ports in Kuwait has been temporarily halted due to adverse weather conditions.
Rewritten Article:
Navigational activities at Shuwaikh and Shuaiba ports in Kuwait took a halt on a stormy Sunday night due to a batch of fierce winds and reduced visibility, as announced by the Kuwait Ports Authority.
The forecasters anticipate some degree of weather enhancement in the coming days, yet dust and the potential for scattered light showers may linger until Monday.
In a subsequent statement, the Authority explained that the temporary closure was necessary to safeguard the wellbeing of maritime crews and port installations. Wind speeds had spiked up to an alarming 82 kilometers per hour, causing a notable drop in visibility.
Earlier in the day, the Meteorological Department had invoked precautions regarding aggressive winds and poor visibility affecting a large portion of the nation. Acting Head of the Meteorology Department, Dharar Al-Ali, spoke to the Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) revealing that satellite imagery and weather radar showed widespread cloud cover blanketing Kuwait, boasting low and medium clouds adorned with patches of cumulus formations. These conditions, when coupled with robust winds, dramatically curtailed visibility in multiple areas, even slipping below the 1,000-meter threshold and reached zero in specific regions.
Al-Ali further highlighted that some automated monitoring stations bore witness to sustained winds surpassing 70 kilometers per hour, while gusts soared beyond 100 kilometers per hour.
Enrichment Data:- Ports suspend operations: Kuwait put the brakes on navigational activities at Shuwaikh and Shuaiba ports on the 5th of May, 2025, due to severe weather conditions marked by wind speeds more than 82 km/h and dust storms that almost obliterated visibility[1][3][4].- Weather Event Details: - Wind Speeds: Gusts skyrocketed past 100 km/h at certain monitoring stations, with sustained winds breaking the 70 km/h barrier[3]. - Visibility Constraints: Horizontal visibility plummeted below 1,000 meters in most areas, disappearing completely in specific zones due to the dense dust[3][4]. - Forecast: Meteorologists envisioned gradual improvement, with dust and the possibility of scattered, light rain persisting till Monday[2][3].
The shutdown was undertaken to maintain safety for workers and port infrastructure under the looming threat of these party-spoiling conditions[3][4].
On the 5th of May, 2025, the suspension of navigational activities at Shuwaikh and Shuaiba ports in Kuwait was initiated due to weather conditions characterized by wind speeds exceeding 82 km/h and near-zero visibility resulting from dust storms, as revealed by the data from the Meteorological Department. The subsequent forecast indicated that dust and light rain showers might persist until Monday, with a potential for wind speeds to surge past 100 km/h at certain monitoring stations, as anticipated by the weather forecasters. This temporary closure was implemented to ensure both the safety of maritime crews and the protection of port infrastructure in the face of these meteorological challenges.
