Dubai Airport submerged in floodwater after heavy rains
The desert city of Dubai faced heavy rainfall on Tuesday, with flood-like conditions developing throughout the UAE. Although rainfall in the Arabian Peninsula is not unheard of, meteorological experts agree that the scale of the current disaster was unanticipated. On average, the desert city sees 94.7 millimetres (3.73 inches) of rain every year in the cooler winter months.
Yesterday, in a mere 24 hours, the desert city witnessed 142 millimetres (5.59 inches) of rain, more than the UAE’s yearly average and the highest rainfall record in 75 years. The country’s meteorological department said rainfall intensified at around 9 a.m. local time and continued to increase throughout the day.
Massive Storm over Dubai – led to floods. pic.twitter.com/ihhn2hU2To
— Interesting Things (@interesting_aIl) April 17, 2024
The ensuing flood completely waterlogged Dubai International Airport and other low-lying areas and brought a complete standstill to the usual hustle and bustle of the city.
The rare torrential downpour becomes one of the latest reminders of climate change as natural phenomena become increasingly extreme. Dubai International Airport, one of the world’s busiest airports, was forced to divert numerous oncoming flights after heavy rainfall rendered the runway dangerous for continuing flight operations.
Reports indicate that the airport’s flight operations suffered massive damage because of the flooding, resulting in 79 incoming flights being cancelled, more than 178 flights delayed, and 10 diverted.
Departures from the airport were also affected, with over 90 flights from Dubai and 13 flights heading to India being cancelled and over 152 others delayed. Access roads and low-level parking zones within the airport were also blocked, with many social media videos showing cars submerged in standing floodwater.
Other key infrastructures, like the world’s largest shopping centre, the Mall of the Emirates, was also heavily flooded with shoppers reporting heavy rains’ caused the ceilings to fall apart in some places. Several highways and underpasses were also submerged in waist-high waters, leaving many motorists stranded in their vehicles.
Lack of flood management capabilities in Dubai
It should be noted that, due to rain being an rare occurrence in the desert city, many of the roads and highways lacked adequate drainage systems to prevent flooding. Disaster Management authorities of the country have arranged tanker trucks to pump out standing floodwater from highways and streets.
Heavy rainfall was also reported all across the UAE and in the neighbouring nations of Oman and Bahrain as well. Over 18 people, including children, were reported killed by heavy rain and flash floods, according to a report from Oman’s National Committee for Emergency Management on Tuesday.
17 April 2024 : Severe flash floods have killed at least 17 in Oman, after torrential rains battered the Gulf state, Oman are worse than in Dubai… #OmanFloods #DubaiFlooding #ClimateScam pic.twitter.com/BAQrsIUC6S
— Anand Panna (@AnandPanna1) April 17, 2024
Authorities issued warnings of more rainfall occurring within the next 24 hours and closed hundreds of schools across the UAE. Both Oman and the UAE were hosts of last year’s COP28 (Conference of the Parties). The UN climate conference had previously warned about the increasing likelihood of flooding due to unusually heavy rainfalls in the Arabian Peninsula.
UAE’s Unusual Rainfall is the Latest Evidence of Climate Change
The floods in the desert city are the latest evidence of human-induced climate change reaching new heights. Disaster analysts and experts speculate that the loss of property and displacement of residents will likely prompt the Arabian nation to pursue long-term flood prevention measures.
Many experts also speculated that the UAE’s increasing dependency on cloud-seeding to create artificial rain has likely tampered with the rain cycles. Anonymous sources with the National Centre for Meteorology said the department flew six to seven cloud seeding flights prior to the rainfalls. The source also stated that in recent years UAE has conducted over 1000 hours of cloud seeding operations across the nation, every year.
With similar incidents of flooding reported in the Urals (South Russia) as well as several parts of Central Asia, climate experts across the globe have issued warnings of increasingly unpredictable climate patterns beginning to occur as human-induced climate change reaches new criticality.
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