Cyclone Mekunu
© AFPTVAn image grab taken from an AFPTV video shows people walking through flood water as they evacuate a flooded area during a cyclone in the Yemeni island of Socotra
Cyclone Mekunu made landfall on the Arabian Peninsula on Friday night, leaving at least one person dead and 40 others missing, according to local officials.

Landfall occurred around midnight local time about 40 km west-southwest of Salalah, which is Oman's third-largest city, according to AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Jason Nicholls.

Mekunu became an extremely severe cyclonic storm with winds equal to a Category 3 hurricane in the Atlantic or east Pacific Ocean prior to making landfall.

A north to northwest track first brought life-threatening impacts to Socotra, as Mekunu passed just north of the island with waves of rain and wind.

A state of emergency was declared in Socotra, a Yemeni island located between the Horn of Africa and Arabian Peninsula, after the storm flooded villages and left at least 40 missing on Thursday, according to the Daily News. Officials fear some of the missing are dead.


Western Oman and eastern Yemen then bore the brunt of Mekunu's wind and heavy rainfall on Friday and into early Saturday.

The storm is being blamed for the death of a 12-year-old girl in Oman, according to the Associated Press (AP).

Salalah's airport and port were both closed and portions of the city were left without power as high winds brought down trees and power lines.

At least 600 people took shelter at local schools during the storm, the AP reported.

This became the first major cyclone to effect both Oman and Yemen in the history of record keeping in the Arabian Sea.

Now that the cyclone has made landfall, Mekunu will continue to weaken. Despite the lessening of wind speeds, torrential rains will persist into Sunday, bringing the continued threats of life-threatening flooding and mudslides.