Dubai locals shocked as weather makes ANOTHER rapid change following hours of flood chaos: ‘Mother nature must be feeling indecisive today’
Residents and tourists in Dubai woke up to a surprising sight today as the sun shone down on the city after days of brutal rain and devastating floods.
The unexpected change in weather comes after the United Arab Emirates had been ravaged by more than a year and a half of heavy rain since Monday evening.
The desert city-state suffered terrible flooding yesterday that inundated the airport and many of the surrounding roads, forcing dozens of flights to be canceled as travelers crowded into the concourse to shelter from the heavy downpours.
Shocking videos shared on social media showed cars being filled with water, forcing hundreds of motorists to abandon their vehicles – some of which were completely submerged – and swim to safety.
The rain started late on Monday, drenching Dubai’s sands and roads with about 0.79 centimeters of rain, according to meteorological data collected at Dubai International Airport.
Residents and tourists in Dubai woke up to a surprising sight today as the sun shone down on the city after days of brutal rain and devastating floods.
The unexpected change in weather comes after the United Arab Emirates was hit by more than a year and a half of heavy rain since Monday evening.
The storms intensified around 9 a.m. local time on Tuesday and continued throughout the day, dumping more rain and hail on the overwhelmed city.
By the end of Tuesday, Dubai had been soaked with more than 17.5 centimeters of rain for more than 24 hours.
Locals and visitors alike shared their shock at the weather change on X today, as well as photo uploads of sunny skies and drying sidewalks.
In a tweet, someone joked: ‘Wow, Dubai can’t decide whether it wants to be sunny or rainy! Mother Nature must be feeling indecisive today.”
Another resident announced, “Good morning. Blue skies and good vibes. Dubai has literally been a movie… flood, sunny, flood, sunny…’
One particularly tired tourist, who uploaded a photo of himself wearing a T-shirt that said ‘RUGGED’, wrote: ‘I finally made it to the hotel after being stuck at the airport for 12 hours! Yes, the weather in Dubai makes me feel rough.”
One stunned resident said: ‘What a difference a day makes… yesterday we had the biggest storm in the recorded history of the UAE. Today? Sun.’
Another person tweeted: ‘AAfter a very long rainy day it is now a calm, sunny day here in JBR,” with a second writing, ‘And now Dubai is sunny as ever.’
Lightning flashes across the sky during a heavy rain in Dubai, April 16, 2024
An SUV stops while trying to drive through standing water in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Tuesday, April 16, 2024
A driver is seen navigating his car through deep water in Dubai
Locals and visitors alike shared their shock at the weather change today on X, as well as photo uploads of sunny skies and drying sidewalks
Since the storm passed, experts are now wondering whether the desert city’s sudden deluge could have been caused by climate interference.
Since the early 1990s, the UAE has used a technique called cloud seeding to increase annual rainfall and drinking water supplies.
In 2021, the United Arab Emirates began creating its own rain using drones that fly into the clouds and release electrical charges to beat the sweltering 122 degrees Fahrenheit (50 degrees Celsius) heat.
The rain is formed using drone technology that delivers an electric shock to clouds to ‘persuade’ them to clump together and produce precipitation.
The UAE is one of the driest countries in the world and hopes this technique can help increase its meager annual rainfall.