News

Rain hits several areas of UAE as weather alert issued

01 Aug 2022

A car moves at a slow pace during heavy rain.

Emadeddin Khalil, Staff Reporter

Heavy rain struck several areas in UAE’s eastern region, prompting authorities to issues severe weather alerts on Monday.

The National Centre of Meteorology (NCM) said rain was witnessed in Sharjah, Khorfakkan, and Ras Al Khaimah.

Light rain was experienced in Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, and Dubai as well.

The National Centre of Meteorology (NCM) revealed that the UAE would be affected by other weather fluctuations that may start from Monday and continue until Thursday this week. The NCM attributed that state of weather to the oscillatory movement of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), which moves towards the north of the Arabian Peninsula and then retreats to the south.

“This may lead to the advancement of the surface and upper depressions from the south to the north, and the flow of moist air masses from the Arabian Sea and the Sea of Oman towards the region and the country,” the NCM added.

The National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority (NCEMA) said, “We call on the distinguished public to be aware of the formation of cumulus clouds in some eastern & western regions of the country, which may be accompanied by rain of different intensity followed by active and dusty winds that might often be of strong density and speed.

“We note that different regions including Eastern and Western regions might be affected. Siji And Al Shawka might also witness some effects due to the weather conditions. We call on the public to kindly remain vigilant, and keep safe.”

The Ministry of Interior (MoI) called for caution and adherence to safety instructions, with the expectation that some areas will witness a state of atmospheric instability, rain and winds of varying intensity, accompanied by thunder and lightning, especially in the eastern and western regions of the country

The Abu Dhabi Police urged motorists to exercise caution due to the rainy weather and to follow the changing speed limits displayed on electronic information boards.

It also explained that with the increase in temperatures during the day, the rainy local cumulus clouds would tower over different regions of the country, especially on the east and south, and extends on the Al Dhafra region as well. This could be accompanied by lightning and thunder sometimes, the NCM added.

The NCM also expected that the weather over the country until Thursday would be dusty and partly cloudy at times with a probability of some cumulus clouds formation eastward by afternoon. The winds will be light to moderate northwesterly to southwesterly winds, freshening at times with a speed of 15 – 30 reaching 40 km/hr., causing blowing dust and sand that could lead to a decrease in horizontal visibility.

The sea will be slight in the Arabian Gulf and slight to moderate in Oman Sea.

The National Centre of Meteorology confirmed that it is following the situation 24/7 to brief the public with the latest developments, calling on all members of society to follow the bulletins and reports issued by the NCM and not to circulate rumors.