Gonu leaves $3.8bn cloud over Oman

Gonu leaves $3.8bn cloud over Oman
by Dylan Bowman
17 June 2007
ArabianBusiness.com

Cyclone Gonu has cost Oman's economy almost $4 billion, according to initial government estimates.

An official source at the Ministry of National Economy said reconstruction could cost the country between $3.24 billion and $3.89 billion, and that the ministry is currently working with various governmental authorities to repair infrastructure damaged or destroyed by the cyclone, WAM reported today.

Cyclone Gonu wreaked havoc on the country earlier this month, battering its coast for three days and killing around 50 people.

The cyclone halted Oman’s oil and gas exports and damaged main roads and bridges connecting the eastern provinces with the capital Muscat, and caused floods and landslides across all regions.

In Muscat's centre, streets were turned into turbulent rivers, trees uprooted and power lines cut. Cars were left piled on top of each other, stuck in rubble and mud.

The country also suffered from power outages for days after the storm left its coast
and moved up to southern Iran.

At its peak, Gonu was measured as a maximum-force Category Five hurricane.

Oman's weather centre, which has been keeping records since 1890, says Gonu could have been the strongest storm to reach the coast since 1977.