Jeddah: The story of the scorching “Fohn winds” that made the city of Jeddah one of the hottest cities in the world!

Arab Weather - During some summer days, the coastal city of Jeddah, overlooking the Red Sea, experiences a struggle between two different types of winds. Some are moderate, affecting it most days of the year, and others are blazing, raising temperatures to record levels, sometimes reaching 50 degrees Celsius!

The Foehn winds, when they blow, make Jeddah the hottest city in the world.

This type of wind is unbearable and undesirable for the residents of Jeddah. It is a wind known worldwide as the “Fohn Wind,” which, for Jeddah, is a very hot easterly wind that descends from the mountains of Makkah and Taif towards Jeddah. It becomes increasingly hot and blazing as it crosses the mountain slopes, reaching Jeddah and transforming its moderate weather into a blazing one that is only broken by the entry of the northwesterly winds coming in from the sea.

Looking back at the climate archive of previous years, we note that the Foehn winds have blown over Jeddah in a number of years with varying intensity. The most notable event occurred in 2015, specifically on August 20, when the hot, dry easterly Foehn winds blew over Jeddah, descending from the mountains of Mecca and Taif. They gained additional heat as they moved over the slopes and valleys, reaching Jeddah and causing record temperatures of up to 50 degrees Celsius! Jeddah was classified as one of the hottest cities in the world on that day.

Type II: Normal North Winds

The second type is the usual northerly wind, which affects Jeddah most days of the year and makes its climate radically different from that of Mecca. These winds are cooler, coming from the sea and constantly work to moderate the atmosphere.