Deadly Floods Strike Oman's Dry Region as Climate Warms

• Oman, traditionally a dry region, is increasingly experiencing destructive and deadly floods, a significant departure from its historical drought patterns.
• The heightened intensity and unpredictability of floods are linked to stronger moisture plumes from the Arabian Sea, driven by rising ocean temperatures, and a rise in powerful, wetter cyclones.
• Arid conditions worsen the danger: dry soil absorbs little water, and wadis fill rapidly, making settlements and roads built along them highly vulnerable to sudden inundation.
• While infrastructure projects are underway, predicting localized desert floods remains challenging, and existing warning systems can be quickly overwhelmed by the speed and volume of water.
• Floods are now a defining risk in Oman, highlighting how climate change brings sudden, dangerous water excess to arid regions, forcing communities to adapt to this new reality.

Why It Matters: Deadly floods in dry regions highlight climate change's unexpected and dangerous impacts.