Kuwait braces for stormy weather as citizens are told to stay indoors

Fire Forces teams respond to 103 calls for help and rescue 106 people stranded on flooded roads and in houses

Kuwait braces for stormy weather as people are warned to stay indoors. Kuwait News Agency

Municipal workers try to drain a road. Kuwait News Agency

Drivers try to pass a flooded road. Kuwait News Agency

Stormy weather closes in. Kuwait News Agency

Kuwait braces for stormy weather as people are warned to stay indoors. Kuwait News Agency

Drivers navigate stormy conditions. Kuwait News Agency

Vehicles drive in a flooded street following heavy rain in Kuwait City. EPA

A flooded street following heavy rain in Kuwait City. EPA

Rescue operation underway as a vehicle is stuck in flood water following heavy rain in Kuwait City, Kuwait, 02 January 2022. EPA / Noufal Ibrahim

Kuwaiti military firemen wade through flood water. EPA

Vehicles drive in a flooded street following heavy rain in Kuwait City. EPA

Vehicles drive in a flooded street following heavy rain in Kuwait City. EPA

Rainwater floods a road in Kuwait City. AFP

Flooding in Kuwait City. AFP

Emergency service personnel use pumps to clear a flooded road in Kuwait City. AFP

Kuwaiti citizens and residents were told to stay indoors amid stormy weather on Sunday as the army's fire department helped to clear flooded roads and other areas.

The Interior Ministry said citizens should not go out unless absolutely necessary given the high winds and heavy rainfall the country has been experiencing since Saturday.

Kuwait’s Meteorological Department forecast moderate to heavy rainfall in most areas of the country on Sunday, and occasional heavy thunderstorms on Monday.

“The rains are expected to last until midnight, when it will be decreasing gradually with a chance of fog in some areas,” the Kuwait News Agency reported, citing the Met forecast.

Kuwait received 34mm of rain by 10am on Sunday.

An Education Ministry official the local Al Rai newspaper that classes would be suspended for a day on Monday and exams postponed until a later date because of the weather.

Meanwhile, Kuwait's Fire Forces said its teams responded to 103 calls for help and rescued 106 people who were stranded on flooded roads and in houses following the overnight downpour.

The last time stormy weather caused a major disruption in Kuwait was in 2018, when heavy rain and winds forced parliament to declare a day off for all ministries, schools and universities to avoid accidents and traffic-related incidents on the country’s major roads.