It's a scorcher at 49 degrees in UAE, stay safe

After having enjoyed relatively mild weather up until Eid Al Fitr this year, UAE residents should now brace themselves for more sweltering days ahead as temperatures in some internal areas are expected to soar up to 49 degrees Celsius, the National Centre of Meteorology (NCM) has predicted. The southern parts of the UAE are already experiencing high temperatures while people living in the coastal areas are feeling the heat more because of increase in humidity, more during the afternoon.
The temperature over the weekend is expected to remain fair in general and partly cloudy by afternoon. While on Thursday, Dubai experienced highs of 44.7 degrees Celsius, the weekend is likely to remain the same - touching mid 40s. Light to moderate winds will blow in general and may cause blowing of dust over some exposed areas. The relative humidity, NCM added, will increase by the night and early morning over some coastal and internal areas, with a chance of mist/fog formation.
Temperatures in some internal areas of the UAE are even expected to touch 49 degrees Celsius. "Over the last few days, relative humidity has been increasing and this is why we feel hotter than the actual temperature. So, humidity plays a big part in how people feel. For this weekend, the humidity levels are expected to vary from 20 per cent to 75 per cent depending on the different areas of the UAE," an official at the NCM said.
Teacher at a Dubai institute, Yasmeen Shaukat who has been in the UAE for 30 years, said "this year it feels unusually hot".
"Just a two-minute walk from my car to the classroom or just from my house to the supermarket has never seemed more difficult than these days. I am unable to breathe because of the heat. I don't remember feeling this hot ever before here but this time I am unable to stand it. It has almost become unbearable to be out in direct sunlight for even five minutes."
For Zeba Khan, who stays in the JLT locality in Dubai, a walk to her child's nursery, which would be a pleasant one up until Eid holidays, has suddenly become one of the toughest part of the day. "I usually walk in the shade while going to pick up my son from school, which is barely a stone's throw from my building. But this week, I could not stand the heat and had to take a cab to pick him up. I feel the temperature has shot up drastically from last week and since we stay next to a lake, the humidity makes us feel more hot than it usually is."
With the summer kicking in, the Ministry of Education also issued modified summer timings for UAE schools starting from June 9. In a circular issued on Saturday, the ministry said public schools and those follow MoE curriculum will not have morning assembly. It also instructed to have three-minute breaks between sessions and said a session's duration would be 40 minutes for all levels.
Most schools of the UAE have announced the summer holidays to begin from July 4 up until August 31.
saman@khaleejtimes.com

• UAE
• Dubai