By Ali Elias
According to Reuters, the rains were the heaviest experienced by the United Arab Emirates in the 75 years that records have been kept. They brought much of the country to a standstill and caused significant damage.
The storm which fell on Tuesday was like a whole year’s rain falling in one day. This seems like a bolt out of the blues considering the desert weather condition of the country and others within the Arabian Peninsula region.
Vehicles, including buses, were abandoned on streets and some could be seen submerged in water. In Abu Dhabi, some supermarkets and restaurants faced product shortages, unable to receive deliveries from Dubai.
Flooding trapped residents in traffic, offices and homes. Many reported leaks at their homes, while footage circulated on social media showed malls overrun with water pouring from roofs.
In Dubai, the most populous and influential Emirate, street closures, detours and partially submerged roads caused heavy congestion, with some cars driving towards oncoming traffic in effort to avoid flooded areas, were observed.
A highway through Dubai was reduced to a single lane in one direction, while the main road that connects Dubai with the capital Abu Dhabi was partially closed in both directions.
“This was like nothing else. It was like an alien invasion,” Jonathan Richards, a Dubai resident from Britain told Reuters.
“I woke up the other morning to people in kayaks with pet dogs, pet cats, suitcases all outside my house.”
“My entire living room is just like … all my furniture is floating right now,” rues another resident, a lady, Rinku Makhecha.
The storm, which hit neighbouring Oman on Sunday, pounded the UAE on Tuesday, with 20 reported dead in Oman and one in the UAE..
Rains are rare in the UAE and elsewhere on the Arabian Peninsula, which is typically known for its dry desert climate. Summer air temperatures can soar above 50 degrees Celsius..
Many in the Emirate, and beyond, are wondering if the unusual downpour has to do with cloud seeding, a process, used by the UAE, to manipulate clouds to increase rainfall.
“Cloud Seeding”, someone in Nigeria had said when the video of cloud seeding in UAE was trending on social media, “is the scientific equivalent of what the local rain makers in Nigeria do to draw and make rain fall anywhere they want”.The local rain makers, however, have not been noted to achieve any level of success during the dry (Summer) season
Authorities in Dubai, led by Dubai’s Crown Prince Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, has already ordered for initiation of plan to take care of such future occurrence.
“At a meeting with government officials in Dubai, we set directives to prepare comprehensive plans in response to natural crises’ such as the unexpected current weather conditions,” the Crown Prince said on X (Twitter).
Drainage system, until now, was not much of an issue in Dubai, due to the nature of their weather, which is characterized by very low rainfall.
.You may want to read the original article by Reuters