1996 Oman cyclone

1996 Oman cyclone

Tropical storm (Saffir–Simpson scale)
Satellite image of the storm approaching Oman
Formed	June 11, 1996
Dissipated	June 12, 1996
Highest winds	1-minute sustained: 75 km/h (45 mph)
Lowest pressure	994 hPa (mbar); 29.35 inHg
Fatalities	341 total
Damage	$1.2 billion (1996 USD)
Areas affected	Oman, Yemen, Somalia
Part of the 1996 North Indian Ocean cyclone season

The 1996 Oman cyclone (also known as Cyclone 02A) was a tenacious and deadly system that caused historic flooding in the southern Arabian Peninsula. It originated from a disturbance in the Gulf of Aden, the first such tropical cyclogenesis on record. After moving eastward, the system interacted with the monsoon trough and became a tropical storm on June 11. Later that day, it turned toward Oman and struck the country's southeast coast. It weakened over land, dissipating on June 12, although it continued to produce rainfall – heavy at times – over the next few days.

Offshore Oman, the storm's rough waves disabled an oil tanker and damaged a fishing boat, killing one person in the latter incident. Striking Oman, the storm produced significant rainfall totals well above the monthly average, peaking at 234 mm (9.2 in) in the Dhofar region. Strong winds where the storm moved ashore damaged buildings and the local water plant. The rains washed out roads and isolated villages, killing two people due to drowning in Al-Ghubra. However, the effects were more severe in Yemen, where the floods were considered the worst on record. The storm produced the heaviest rainfall in 70 years, reaching 189 mm (7.4 in) in Ma'rib. Flood waters washed away or damaged 1,068 km (664 mi) of roads and 21 bridges, some of them dating back 2,000 years to the Roman era. The storm washed away the topsoil or otherwise wrecked 42,800 ha (106,000 acres) of crop fields, accounting for US$100 million in agriculture damage. At least 1,820 houses were destroyed, many of them built on wadis, or dry river beds. Overall damage was estimated at US$1.2 billion, and there were 338 deaths in Yemen. The World Bank assisted in a project to rebuild the damaged infrastructure in Yemen and to mitigate against future floods.

On May 31, a weak circulation persisted over the warm waters of the Gulf of Aden between Yemen and Somalia. Its origins were unknown, possibly the convergence of the sea breeze along the coast of Somalia with the monsoon flow. The system produced convection, or thunderstorms, along both coasts of the body of water. As it moved east-northeastward along the coast of Yemen and Oman, the disturbance brought dry air from the north, which decreased the convection. It moved farther offshore on June 7 into the open Arabian Sea, where it interacted with the south-west monsoon and developed more convection.