Dubai United Arab Emirates Heavy rain lashed the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday, submerging parts of major highways, leaving vehicles abandoned on roads across Dubai and bringing traffic at the city-state's massive international airport briefly to a standstill. Meanwhile, the death toll from separate heavy floods in neighboring Oman has risen to 18, and others remain missing as the sultanate braces for the storm.
The rain began overnight, leaving huge puddles on normally dry streets and airport runways, as strong winds disrupted flights at Dubai International, the world's busiest airport for international travel and home to long-haul airline Emirates. The airport said in a Social media post series He added that all operations were halted for 25 minutes on Tuesday afternoon, and that all arrivals would be diverted after that “until weather conditions improve.”
By evening, more than 4.75 inches of rain had drenched the UAE — the typical year-long average in the desert nation — and more was expected to fall in the coming hours.
Abdul Hadi Al Ramahi – Reuters
Police and emergency personnel walked slowly through flooded streets, emergency lights flashing as bolts of lightning flashed across the sky, occasionally touching the top of the Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest building.
Schools across the UAE, a federation of seven sheikhdoms, had largely closed before the storm, and most government employees were working remotely where possible. Many workers also stayed home, although some ventured out, with the unfortunate having their vehicles parked in deeper than expected water covering some roads.
Authorities sent tanker trucks into the streets to drain floodwaters that had flowed into some homes, forcing people to grab buckets and pails to try to save their homes.
Rainfall is unusual in the UAE, an arid country on the Arabian Peninsula, but occurs periodically during the cold winter months. Many roads and other areas lack drainage due to lack of regular rainfall, which has exacerbated flooding.
Abdul Hadi Al Ramahi – Reuters
Rain also fell in Bahrain, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
In neighboring Oman, the sultanate on the eastern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, at least 18 people have been killed by torrential rains in recent days, according to a statement issued Tuesday by the country's National Emergency Management Committee. This includes about 10 schoolchildren who were swept away by a car on Monday along with an adult.
Climate scientists have warned for years that it is human-driven Climate change Nourishes More extreme and less predictable weather Events around the world.
Parts of southern Russia and Central Asia have been facing unusually devastating amounts of rain and melting snow for days, forcing tens of thousands of people to evacuate to higher areas and areas. More than 60 people were killed In Pakistan and Afghanistan.
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