Hadramout in the Crosshairs of Disasters: The Meteorological Authority Struggles With Poor Capabilities

In the heart of Hadramout Governorate, among the most affected by climate change in Yemen, is located the Meteorological Room which has emerged as a fulcrum for tackling the climate challenges that threaten the life of people and the region’s economy. With its vast area and variable terrain extending from coast to desert, Hadramout has long been vulnerable to natural disasters such as floods and tropical storms.

The Meteorological Room plays a very important role as it works for monitoring and analyzing climate change in an attempt to predict possible risks and alert the local community and the government to take the necessary measures. However, behind this vital role, there is a complicated reality in which technical obstacles intervene coupled with logistic challenges. The Meteorological Room in Hadramout is hampered by poor capabilities, depending mostly on old devices and limited technology that don’t keep pace with the international developments or standards in the field of weather forecasting.

Despite the earnest efforts by a small team of specialists who are committed to do their role in protecting the governorate, the lack of finances and governmental support makes it difficult to arrive at accurate forecasts. This is very important in an area where a small mistake in estimation can intensify the human suffering due to an environmental disaster. Accurate assessments can help emergency managers identify where serious problems are likely to occur during any approaching environmental calamity.

Through this report inside the Meteorological Room in Hadramout, ’South24 Center‘ helps to highlight the daily challenges that this vital institution faces and the tough circumstances in which meteorologists work. These include the lack of equipment and difficulties in accessing the internet. This is a crucial problem as they rely on data and analyses that need sophisticated technology and sturdy communication networks. The report also discusses the attempts by the Meteorological Room to tackle these challenges by dividing its projects into development phases, irrespective of the ongoing obstacles.

In general, the Meteorological Room in Yemen faces massive challenges regarding accurate weather forecasts, especially in the coastal areas. Meteorologists rely on a limited number of weather forecast stations. This is in addition to the international network ‘Synoptic Data’, affiliated to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).

For making Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) forecasts [1] superfast computers and high internet speeds are required – both of which Yemen lacks. Therefore, meteorologists depend on subscribing to the international networks to use their strong computers for making the mathematical calculations, amid very poor governmental funds. This is in the background of what is described by meteorologists as short-sighted and skeptical looks by society and probably decision makers toward their efforts and work, in terms of weather and climate predictions. 

Eng. Abdulrahman Hamid, Head of the Center of Meteorology and Early Warning in Hadramout, told ’South24 Center‘ about their efforts for developing an integrated system for predicting the weather status. He shed light on the challenges the center faces, including the lack of funding and unfulfilled promises as well as internet outage and slowness.

Hamid said: “We began our project in 2016 through simple self-efforts. The official inauguration was in 2021 after a better office was prepared. Our work began at the Al-Salam neighborhood in Mukalla inside the governorate’s administrative headquarters. We had a dilapidated office in an old building. The technical capabilities were extremely limited. We had a station in Fuwwah, but it is currently out of service due to the lack of maintenance and outdated technology.”

Hamid talked about the center’s efforts in carrying out a two-stage development project:

The First Stage is the establishment of a Numerical Weather Prediction system depending on data bases that will be fed into super-powerful computers. These devices allow for making complicated calculations that help in predicting climate changes with higher accuracy.

The Second Stage is deploying a network of meteorological stations across Hadramout. These stations will collect accurate data on the weather which will be analyzed by supercomputers.

Although the Early Warning Center in Hadramout has made some progress, it still faces several challenges, the prominent of which is repeated internet outages, especially during weather crises and disasters. This has hindered the center’s ability to collect data and analyze it at the right time. Moreover, there is an urgent need to upgrade the in-use old devices which don’t match up to the project’s requirements, and also acquire new ones.

As for the current potential, the official said: “Currently, we have two meteorological stations that provide us with real-time information about weather conditions. The first one is located in the Early Warning Office in Mukalla, while the second one is in the city of Al-Shihr. Over the coming period, our center is expected to receive support, including by way of new stations spread out in the remaining districts. We have received promises for achieving that.”

Regarding data submitted by these stations, Hamid pointed out that “it is a real-time monitor of the weather status. We then feed the computers with this data, which in turn allows us to make predictions.”

He stressed that those who are in the Early Warning Center in Hadramout are looking for support, adding: “We submitted several requests to many bodies and organizations, including the highest authorities in the state, but we have only received promises, which have not seen the light so far”.

He pointed to the climate disasters that hit Hadramout and other governorates, especially after the 2008 floods and the extreme weather conditions over the past years. He elaborated that the climate changes have become more severe which requires a deeper understanding of the warning center’s role and to deliver the necessary support so that the destruction to life and infrastructure can be avoided during any extreme weather event.

According to him, it is necessary for people to be aware of the circumstances and the nature of their work and that it does not involve providing categorical information but likely forecasts about the weather based on data.

He added; “When we use weather forecasting systems, we rely on complicated equations for analyzing data. This is especially due to the fact that our country is located between subtropical and tropical zones. The problem lies in that these predictions aren’t 100% accurate but they are only speculations and possibilities.”

“Even if we compare the weather between the coastal areas in Yemen and Saudi Arabia, we notice several forecasting failures despite the developed potentials in the Saudi Arabian Kingdom. This can be seen in the floods that hit Jeddah that were completely out of the Saudi Meteorology’s predictions,” he explained.

Hamid talked about the changing pattern regarding the seasonal rains in the Hadramout coast over the past years, adding that the rains that usually would begin in January and continue till March have recently stopped.

Academic Dr.Omar Al-Muhammadi, Head of the Geography Department in the University of Hadramout, stressed that the Early Warning Center in Hadramout is in urgent need of upgrade. He told ’South24 Center‘: “From the technical perspective, the Meteorological Room in Hadramout faces challenges including the lack of sophisticated equipment and technologies as well as weak communication and internet.”

He explained: “Modern equipment and technology help in the collection and analyzing of weather data, which the Meteorology Room lacks. There is need for more financial resources to upgrade and add to the technology infrastructure. This is in addition to the difficulties in accessing the internet, especially during a weather crisis.”

Al-Muhammadi pointed out that he does not have a comprehensive knowledge about the quality and availability of devices in the Meteorology and Early Warning System rooms in Hadramout. However, he stressed the importance of having various devices for detecting earthquakes and issuing early warnings.

“The required devices and technologies include for monitoring depressions that form into cyclones blowing in from the Indian Ocean, devices for sending information, and stations for detecting, measuring, and documenting earthquakes,” he said.

Al-Muhammadi concluded by underscoring that there is a clear gap compared to the international standards due to the lack of modern devices and technology.

On August 5, Yemeni Prime Minister, Ahmed Bin Mubarak, gave directions for preparing “a national vision” that reflects Yemen’s priorities to confront climate change. This came amid devastating floods that swept Tihama on Yemen’s western coast, nearly a year after the tropical cyclone ’Tej‘ hit Al-Mahra and Hadramout.

So far, the features and priorities of this ‘national vision’ are not clear, and whether it will include providing necessary support to the early warning centers in the governorates, especially Hadramout.