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Muscat: Suwaiq, a small hamlet on the Batinah coast 125-km north of Muscat, was hit with cricket-ball sized hail as rain beat down on most parts of Oman for the whole of Saturday night bringing down mercury level to sub 20 degree centigrades.
The hail stones caused extensive damage to properties and vehicles in Suwaiq, according to eye witnesses, who spoke to Gulf News from Suwaiq.
“It was a sleepless night as hail stones rained down at least three times on Saturday night,” Omani businessman Maheshbhai Ashar, told Gulf News, adding that the first shower of hail stones came close to 10pm.
Ashar, whose family runs a business in this town for over a century, said that the hails cascaded in big quantity.
“Windscreens and lights of most vehicles in the town are broken while several cars had big dents due to hail stones,” he revealed. The merchant also said that neon sign boards of several shops and business establishments were damaged beyond repair.
The insurance industry otherwise is bracing up for huge claims due to hail storm as well as heavy rains that lashed most parts of the country on the north and western regions.
Some cars parked on low lying areas last night in Muscat were tossed around by heavy currents from wadis, especially in Qurum and Darseit areas.
“We are expecting unusually high claims due to rains and hail storms in Suwaiq,” Dr J. Ratnakumar, General Manager of New India Insurance told Gulf News.
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