TROPICAL CYCLONE PHET ALERT
Valued Clients,
We have received a Tropical Cyclone Alert today. All our clients with marine or near-shore operations are hereby advised to exercise extreme caution and be prepared to activate adverse weather policies should the need arise.
We have raised the level of preparedness in all our response bases. In addition to that OMAN PESCO is working closely with the Institute of HSE Management (IHSEM) in order to provide an Integrated HSE Emergency Advisory Service around the clock. We can be activated 24/7 via our Emergency Hotline: +968 96622214.
All our valued clients are advised to verify that their Emergency Operations Centres have our emergency hotline number. Communications tests are also recommended to verify that Emergency Teams are able to establish communications with our Emergency Response Team.
We hope that the cyclone passes without any safety or operational impacts.
The details of the advisory that we received are as follows:
UPDATE (9) June 5, 2010 - 13:20 Oman Local Time
Tropical cyclone Phet / 03A
Position 23.5N 59.8E
Location 405 miles W of Karachi, Pakistan
Movement 025° (NNE) at 7 knots
Maximum sustained windspeeds 60 knots gusting to 75 knots
Comparative strength Tropical storm
Winds of 34 knots or higher occur within 75 to 105 miles of the centre
Threatened landmasses Pakistan
Maximum significant wave height is 25 feet
Phet is veering towards the northeast, into the Gulf of Oman and continues to weaken. The storm will make landfall near Karachi in 48 hours' time, barely at tropical storm strength.
UPDATE (8) June 4, 2010 - 22:00 Oman Local Time
Tropical cyclone Phet / 03A
Position 22.9N 59.5E
Location 65 miles SE of Musqat, Oman
Movement 015° (NNE) at 6 knots
Maximum sustained windspeeds 65 knots gusting to 80 knots
Comparative strength Hurricane (cat. I, Saffir Simpson scale)
Winds of 34 knots or higher occur within 75 to 115 miles of the centre
Threatened landmasses Oman, Pakistan
Maximum significant wave height is 22 feet
Phet is veering towards the northeast, into the Gulf of Oman and continues to weaken. The storm will make landfall near Karachi in 48 hours' time, barely at tropical storm strength.
Regional warnings
Winds of 120-130 kph could occur along the Oman coastline at point of landfall. The Pakistani coastline will see winds of lesser velocity.
UPDATE (7) June 4, 2010 - 13:40 Oman Local Time
Tropical cyclone Phet / 03A
Position 20.8N 59.2E
Location 170 miles SSE of Musqat, Oman
Movement 340° (NNW) at 8 knots
Maximum sustained windspeeds 105 knots gusting to 130 knots
Comparative strength Hurricane (cat. III, Saffir Simpson scale)
Winds of 34 knots or higher occur within 90 to 115 miles of the centre
Winds of 64 knots or higher occur within 45 miles of the centre
Threatened landmasses Oman, Pakistan (Sindh and Balochistan)
Maximum significant wave height is 30 feet
Phet has maintained intensity as it makes landfall in southeastern Oman. The storm will pass over the far east of Oman, reemerging over the Gulf of Oman as a weakened system, but still at hurricane-equivalent strength. Phet will make landfall in Pakistan within 4 days.
UPDATE (6) June 3, 2010 - 22:00 Oman Local Time
Tropical cyclone Phet / 03A
Position 20.0N 59.5E
Location 220 miles SSE of Musqat, Oman
Movement 360° (N) at 9 knots
Maximum sustained windspeeds 105 knots gusting to 130 knots
Comparative strength Hurricane (cat. III, Saffir Simpson scale)
Winds of 34 knots or higher occur within 85 to 100 miles of the centre
Winds of 64 knots or higher occur within 30 miles of the centre
Threatened landmasses Oman, Pakistan (Sindh and Balochistan)
Maximum significant wave height is 30 feet
Phet is slowly weakening as it skims the east coast of Oman. The storm will veer northeast and make landfall just east of Karachi in 4 days' time, losing strenght all the time due to increasingly adverse atmospheric conditions.
UPDATE (5) June 3, 2010 - 14:30 Oman Local Time
Tropical cyclone Phet / 03A
TROPICAL CYCLONE (TC) 03A (PHET), LOCATED APPROXIMATELY 275 NM SOUTH OF MUSCAT, OMAN, HAS TRACKED NORTH-NORTHWESTWARD AT 04 KNOTS OVER THE PAST SIX HOURS.
Tropical Cyclone Windspeed Scale Strength Category 1 Minute Max. Sustained Winds knots mph km/h Tropical Depression TD Tropical Storm TS Severe Cyclonic Storm Cat 1 Severe Cyclonic Storm Cat 2 Severe Cyclonic Storm Cat 3 Super Cyclonic Storm Cat 4 Super Cyclonic Storm Cat 5
UPDATE (4) June 2, 2010 - 20:40 Oman Local Time
NORTHERN INDIAN OCEAN / Arabian Sea
Tropical cyclone Phet / 03A
Warning 08 from JTWC for 1500 GMT
Position 18.2N 60.0E
Location 560 miles SW of Karachi, Pakistan
Movement 310° (NW) at 8 knots
Maximum sustained wind speeds 125 knots gusting to 150 knots
Comparative strength Hurricane (cat. IV, Saffir Simpson scale)
Winds of 34 knots or higher occur within 75 to 85 miles of the centre
Winds of 64 knots or higher occur within 35 to 45 miles of the centre
Threatened landmasses Oman, Pakistan (Sindh and Balochistan)
Maximum significant wave height is 27 feet
Next update from JTWC at 2100 GMTPhet has continued to move northwest in the Arabian Sea and has intensified further. The storm will continue to strengthen and will make landfall in Oman in 36 hours' time with winds of 140 knots (260 kph) near the centre. After passing over land, the storm will have lost a great deal of its power and reemerge over the far north Arabian Sea to make final landfall in Pakistan - not reintensifying due to adverse atmospheric conditions.
Regional warnings
RSMC New Delhi warns that gale force winds with speeds of 65 to 75 kph, gusting to 85 kph will commence along and off the Oman coast by this evening. Tomorrow, winds will gradually increase to 170 to 190 kph and 210 to 220 kph on Friday. Sea conditions off the Oman coast will be very high to phenomenal.
UPDATE (3) June 2, 2010 - 18:40 Oman Local Time
Meteorology and Air Navigation Directorate General / Statement
The latest Satellite images and numerical prediction charts indicate that the tropical storm over the Arabian Sea has intensified into a tropical cyclone called 'PHET', with its center near latitude of 17.7 degrees North and longitude 60.5 degrees East Maximum sustained winds around the centre are estimated to be around 64 Konts. PHET is about 360 km away from Masirah Island.
In a statement in this respect, the Directorate General of Meteorology and Air Navigation (DGMAN) said that the nearest mass of convective clouds is about 200 km. The wind speed around the cyclone center is 150 km/hr. It is expected to move towards the North West direction initially at about 12 km/hr towards the coasts of the Al Sharqiyah Region during the next 24 hours.
The initial weather forecast suggests that the movement of the cyclone centre may later be changed to the North East towards the Pakistani and Indian coasts. The convective clouds associated heavy rains and strong winds will likely to affect Masirah Island and the costal areas extending from Ras Madrakah to Ras Al Had; when the cyclone center passes near the coasts of the Al Sharqiyah Region next Thursday and Friday.
UPDATE (2) June 2, 2010 - 17:40 Oman Local Time
Cyclone Phet (category 3 now) and will reach category 4 on Thurs. Jun 3, 2010.
1. Move NW very close to Oman easternmost coast, bring heavy rain, high winds, and high waves to easternmost Oman, or
Cyclone Phet will either:
2. Make landfall over easternmost coast of Oman with destructive winds, flooding rain, and significant storm surge to a large part of eastern Oman
As a precautionary measure you should:
- postpone any unnecessary road trips and business travel secure any outdoor
items, belongings, equipment both at home and work
- stay away from the sea edge, as wind and waves are likely to get high over the course of the night Please use your own judgment, if winds are high and the situation is dangerous do not venture out. If you have to travel, exercise
your usual caution crossing Wadis.
UPDATE (1) June 2, 2010 - 12:30 Oman Local Time
1 June, 2010 - Bulletin 271
NORTHERN INDIAN OCEAN / Arabian Sea
Tropical cyclone Phet / 03A
Warning 05 from JTWC for 2100 GMT
Position 17.1N 61.5E
Location 550 miles SSW of Karachi, Pakistan
Movement 325° (NW) at 6 knots
Maximum sustained windspeeds 65 knots gusting to 80 knots
Comparative strength Hurricane (cat. I, Saffir Simpson scale)
Winds of 34 knots or higher occur within 60 to 65 miles of the centre
Threatened landmasses Oman, India (Gujarat), Pakistan (Sindh and Balochistan)
Maximum significant wave height is 18 feet
Next update from JTWC at 0300 GMT
Phet has moved northwest in the Arabian Sea and has intensified further. The storm will continue to strengthen and could approach Oman, before veering sharply northeast by Thursday or Friday. Landfall will occur a day later in southeastern Pakistan, between Karachi and to the border with India, as a 105 knot system.
Regional warnings
RSMC New Delhi is anticipating Phet to affect the Indian and Pakistani coastlines from Thursday onwards.
