Al Ain: Heavy rain on Monday pounded parts of Dubai, Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah, giving yet another day of pleasant but unusual weather conditions at this time of the year.
There was sudden and heavy rain in Margham and Al Lissily areas of Dubai at around 3.15pm, said a forecaster at the national weather bureau. Thick black clouds and dust completely covered the afternoon sunlight in other areas where motorists had to switch on head lamps to drive on the roads as visibility was reduced to a few hundred metres.
Many residents were surprised by the sudden change in the weather and took refuge in the nearby buildings. “It was suddenly an evening scene at around 4pm,” said Rakish Kumar, a resident of International City. Within a few minutes, he said, rain started with slight thunder activity. “We love this kind of weather though it’s a rare phenomenon here,” said Kumar.
Abdul Kareem, a motorist who was going to Dubai from Al Ain, said the roads were soaked with rainwater and driving was difficult due to poor visibility. The black clouds later moved towards Al Khwaneej, Mirdof, Al Aweer, Jebel Ali, and other areas.
Scattered rain showers also affected parts of Sharjah, Ajman, Kalba and Al Showaib, a town in the north-east of Al Ain.
The rain affected traffic on some major highways such as Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Road and Emirates Road, where cars were moving slowly.
Strong winds kicked up dust and sand before the rain which also affected visibility. There were, however, no reports of accidents.
“Strong winds come along with the clouds activity,” said a forecaster, advising people to exercise caution behind the steering wheel when driving through rainy and windy areas. He said the clouds had been moving from over Pakistan and Iran.
The unstable weather is likely to continue at least for the next 48 hours during which it may rain in some northern and eastern parts of the country.
The National Centre of Meteorology and Seismology said the weather will be partly cloudy to cloudy on Tuesday and Wednesday in some areas. Cloud cover will increase with a chance of some towering clouds. Winds will be moderately rough in general but will become stronger at times kicking up dust and sand inland. The sea will also be moderately rough.
