diff --git a/src/storage/src/source/reclock/compat.rs b/src/storage/src/source/reclock/compat.rs
index 1e1a4d0255c56..91c52a35b9c1e 100644
--- a/src/storage/src/source/reclock/compat.rs
+++ b/src/storage/src/source/reclock/compat.rs
@@ -117,6 +117,30 @@ where
         // Allow manually simulating the scenario where the since of the remap
         // shard has advanced too far.
         fail_point!("invalid_remap_as_of");
+
+        if since.is_empty() {
+            // This can happen when, say, a source is being dropped but we on
+            // the cluster are busy and notice that only later. In those cases
+            // it can happen that we still try to render an ingestion that is
+            // not valid anymore and where the shards it uses are not valid to
+            // use anymore.
+            //
+            // This is a rare race condition and something that is expected to
+            // happen every now and then. It's not a bug in the current way of
+            // how things work.
+            tracing::info!(
+                source_id = %id,
+                %worker_id,
+                "since of remap shard is the empty antichain, suspending...");
+
+            // Suspending will make it so we don't make progress and downstream
+            // operators don't think we're making progress. And this dataflow
+            // will eventually be removed once the news about removal make it
+            // from the controller to the cluster.
+            std::future::pending::<()>().await;
+            unreachable!("pending future never returns");
+        }
+
         assert!(
             PartialOrder::less_equal(since, &as_of),
             "invalid as_of: as_of({as_of:?}) < since({since:?}), \