Saudi Arabia weather today: Fog and dust in 9 regions and important warnings
The National Center for Meteorology in Saudi Arabia issued weather for Monday, warning of varying fog intensity that will directly affect horizontal visibility across large parts of the Kingdom, including nine administrative regions. These warnings are part of the ongoing monitoring of weather fluctuations experienced during seasonal transitions.
Weather details and areas affected by fog
The center explained that the prevailing weather phenomenon during the early morning hours is fog, which reduces horizontal visibility to between 3 and 5 kilometers in some locations, while visibility may reach near-zero (1 to 3 kilometers) in others. This necessitates caution while driving on highways and open roads. The affected areas include:
- Eastern Province: Jubail, Khobar, Khafji, Dammam, Qatif, and Ras Tanura.
- Makkah Region: The highlands in Taif and Maysan.
- Medina: Al-Ula and Khaybar governorates.
- Asir region: Abha, Al Namas, Balqarn, Tanomah, and Khamis Mushait.
- Tabuk region: Tayma, Haql, and Tabuk city.
- Northern borders: Al-Uwayqilah and Arar.
- Al-Jawf region: Al-Qurayyat, Tabarjal, and Tarif.
- Al-Baha region: Al-Qura, Al-Mandaq, Al-Baha city, Baljurashi, and Bani Hassan.
- Jazan region: Al-Harth, Al-Dayer, Al-Raith, Al-Ardah, Al-Aydabi, Fifa, and Haroub.
Climate context and the importance of warnings
Fog is a common climatic phenomenon in the coastal and mountainous regions of Saudi Arabia at this time of year. It typically occurs due to high relative humidity combined with low minimum temperatures during the night and early morning hours, leading to condensation of water vapor near the Earth's surface. These warnings are of paramount importance given their direct impact on land navigation and road safety, particularly during the morning rush hour when employees and students are commuting to work and school.
Dust storms and strong winds in the Eastern Province
In a related development, the National Center for Meteorology warned of other effects related to surface winds, as parts of the Eastern Province wind activity that will stir up dust and sand. This condition will begin at 7:00 AM and continue until 4:00 PM, particularly affecting the governorates of Al-Ahsa, Al-Udayd, Abqaiq, and Hafr Al-Batin. This is expected to reduce horizontal visibility to levels ranging between 3 and 5 kilometers.
Public safety recommendations
Due to these weather fluctuations, weather experts and relevant security authorities advise following traffic safety guidelines, which include reducing speed, using fog lights (if available) or low lights instead of high lights, and leaving a sufficient safety distance between vehicles to avoid accidents resulting from sudden stops or lack of visibility.
