Morning thunderstorms flood Dubai

By Daniel Bardsley, Kelly Crane and Alaric Gomes, Staff Reporters

Roads and houses were flooded as thunderstorms lashed the UAE today - and forecasters warned the turbulent weather was set to continue.

Air conditioning units stopped, traffic lights went dead and emergency generators kicked into action as the effects took their toil.

Cars were abandoned across the city as motorists realised they were unable to battle the depth of water on the roads.

Residents in the Springs, Meadows and Arabian Ranches, some of the worst hit communities, were left stranded for up to an hour while the water build up subsided.

Rain leaked into many upstairs rooms from the balconies in the Springs and Meadows soaking curtains, rugs and personal possessions.

The rains - caused by cold air moving into the upper atmosphere from the north west - began in the Jebel Ali area and by about 8am had moved into Dubai. Forecasters put out warnings for air, sea and road travel, with offshore winds expected to gust at up to 40 knots.

Phil Targett, a duty forecaster at Dubai International Airport, said: "We'll see further rain and thunderstorms into Friday, and there could also be isolated showers on Saturday."

By shortly after midday today, meteorologists at Dubai International Airport had recorded 12.8mm of rain.

Organisers of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis tournament are waiting for a respite from the rains before reaching a decision on the quarterfinals of the Women’s Open here in Dubai.

"We really do not have any control over the rains," Salah Tahlak told Gulf News earlier this afternoon.

"We will have to wait and see when it stops raining, so that we can then go ahead and get the courts dried out," Tahlak said.

The tournament director further stated that everything is on standby the minute the rain subsides. "It will take just 30 to 45 minutes to get the courts to dry out," he said.

Nearly 100 volunteers and ushers are at hand along with conventional hand mops and half a dozen heavy-duty blowers, should the rains stop.

"All we can do at this moment is to wait and see when the rains will stop so that we can go ahead with the games," Tahlak stated.