Many workers stayed home as well, though some ventured out, with the unfortunate ones stalling out their vehicles in deeper-than-expected water covering some roads. Schools across the UAE, a federation of seven sheikhdoms, largely shut ahead of the storm and government employees were largely working remotely if they could. The UAE, which relies heavily on energy-hungry desalination plants to provide water, conducts cloud seeding in part to increase its dwindling, limited groundwater. The center did not immediately respond to questions Wednesday, though flight-tracking data analyzed by the AP showed one aircraft affiliated with the UAE's cloud-seeding efforts flew around the country Sunday. Several reports quoted meteorologists at the National Center for Meteorology as saying they flew six or seven cloud-seeding flights before the rains. One reason may have been ' cloud seeding,' in which small planes flown by the government go through clouds burning special salt flares. However, the rains were acute across the UAE. Rain also fell in Bahrain, Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. 'We are in uncharted territory, but I can assure everyone we are working as hard as we possibly can to make sure our customers and staff are looked after.' Did 'cloud-seeding' contribute? In living memory, I don't think anyone has ever seen conditions like it,' Griffiths told the state-owned talk radio station Dubai Eye. 'It remains an incredibly challenging time. Some aircraft had been diverted to Al Maktoum International Airport at Dubai World Central, the city-state's second airfield. Paul Griffiths, the airport's CEO, acknowledged continued issues with flooding Wednesday morning, saying every place an aircraft could be safely parked was taken. Passengers wait at a flight connection desk at Dubai International Airport, April 17, 2024, amid flight delays and cancelations caused by flash flooding brought by a historic rain storm. A bystander helped them over a highway barrier with their carry-on luggage, the bottles of gin they picked up from a duty-free store clinking away. They ended up getting a taxi to near their home some 18 miles away, but floodwater on the road stopped them. There's people sleeping in the airport,' the man said Wednesday. There's people sleeping in the Metro station. One couple, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity in a country with strict laws that criminalize critical speech, called the situation at the airport 'absolute carnage.' 'We are working hard to recover operations as quickly as possible in very challenging conditions.' Please check your flight status directly with your airline,' the airport said in a tweet. 'Flights continue to be delayed and diverted. An average year sees just 3.73 inches of rain fall at Dubai International Airport, a hub for the long-haul carrier Emirates. Flooding impacts Dubai International Airportīy the end of Tuesday, more than 5.59 inches of rainfall had soaked Dubai over 24 hours. local time Tuesday and continued throughout the day, dumping more rain and hail onto the overwhelmed city.

The rains began late Monday, soaking the sands and roadways of Dubai with some 0.79 inches of rain, according to meteorological data collected at Dubai International Airport. The state-run WAM news agency called the rain Tuesday 'a historic weather event' that surpassed 'anything documented since the start of data collection in 1949.' Flash flooding in Dubai as storm dumps historic rainfall 04:51ĭubai, United Arab Emirates - The desert nation of the United Arab Emirates attempted to dry out Wednesday from the heaviest rain ever recorded there after a deluge flooded out Dubai International Airport, disrupting travel through the world's busiest airfield for international travel.

Rainfall totals map