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The National Center for Meteorology has activated red alerts for heavy rain and the risk of flash floods in several regions of Saudi Arabia beginning October 12, as an active weather system spreads thunderstorms across the kingdom. Alerts at the highest level cover governorates in the Northern Borders including Arar and Al Uwayqilah, as well as areas in Al-Jawf such as Sakaka, Al Qurayyat and Dawmat al-Jandal, according to the center’s early warning platform. Similar red notices extend to parts of Makkah, Asir and Al-Baha, where the National Center for Meteorology anticipates the most intense activity during afternoon and evening hours.
The National Center for Meteorology detailed that these red alerts run from early afternoon until late evening on Monday, flagging open terrain and major highways as especially vulnerable to sudden water flows. Its assessment lists active winds, hail, torrential downpours and thunder strikes among the expected effects that could cut visibility to near zero in places. The center’s data further indicates that moderate to heavy thunderstorms will drive runoff in wadis across the warned zones.
Additional governorates in Asir, including Al Namas, Al Majardah and Rijal Alma, fall under red warnings for the same rainfall risks, the National Center for Meteorology reported. Orange alerts for moderate rain apply in sections of Makkah such as Al Ardiyat, while yellow notices cover lighter activity in parts of Jazan and other Asir districts. The National Center for Meteorology has maintained these layered warnings as the system evolves from preceding days of unstable weather.
The National Center for Meteorology’s daily forecast issued October 12 confirms the potential for moderate to heavy thunderstorms accompanied by hail and dust-raising winds across Jazan, Asir, Al-Baha, Makkah, Madinah, Hail, Tabuk, Al-Jawf and the Northern Borders. Southern districts of Riyadh, the Eastern Province and Najran may receive lighter to moderate rain, according to the center. Coastal fog remains possible overnight and into early morning in Tabuk, Madinah, Makkah and Eastern Province shorelines.
Intensity definitions published by the National Center for Meteorology classify moderate rain as 5 to 9 millimeters per hour and heavy rain as 10 to 50 millimeters or more, values that align with the current red alerts. Such rates, combined with winds exceeding 60 kilometers per hour in bursts, heighten the flash flood threat in vulnerable terrain. The center has tracked similar patterns earlier in the month, prompting sustained monitoring through its automated warning network.
Surface wind patterns over the Red Sea will strengthen to more than 50 kilometers per hour near thunderstorm clouds, the National Center for Meteorology noted in its marine update for October 12. Wave heights could exceed two meters in affected waters, particularly toward the Bab al-Mandab Strait. The authority continues to update its forecasts as the weather system progresses northward and eastward through the week.
