UAE: Top 3 areas that received heaviest rains last week

The Al Dhafrah region in Abu Dhabi received the maximum rainfall on May 2 during the recent rain event in the UAE, according to the National Centre of Meteorology (NCM).

Last Thursday, heavy rains and thunderstorms hit the UAE, prompting the NCM to issue an orange alert. Some residents had stayed home while students switched to distance learning. Those who stepped out early morning faced downpours and strong winds.

In the north, waterfalls gushed out as dark rain clouds hovered over the mountains.

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Speaking to Khaleej Times Dr Habib a weather expert at the NCM, said Al Dhafra in Abu Dhabi registered the highest precipitation.

He said, “The rainfall recorded was significant in the Al Dhafrah area. It reached 72.3 mm. This is a significant amount of rainfall. This was followed by the Majil Bada Thalab and Abu Al-Abyad areas which received 67.9 mm and 58.5mm of rainfall respectively.”

How do the two rain occurrences compare?

However, it’s worth noting that the rainfall received in the UAE on May 2 was not as intense as the one on April 16 with significant weather events unlikely in the near future.

By May 3, Friday, the weather conditions improved in general with the sky becoming clear in most parts of the country.

After the end of the Ghadir depression’s impact on the UAE last weekend, the NCM shared data on rainfall across different regions of the country during the rainy spell from May 1 to May 2, 2024.

Notably, the precipitation recorded during the Ghadir depression in May is deemed pointedly higher and uncommon for the Al Dhafrah area.

In Dubai, Expo 2020 received 38.1mm of rainfall during last week’s rainfall.

Dr Habib explained that during this month, the influence of the Siberian high pressure will diminish as depressions impact the region from both the east and west. When these depressions are accompanied by the extension of westerly upper air troughs, cloud cover tends to increase, “raising the likelihood of light to medium rain, potentially heavy in only southern and eastern regions,” he added.

Nation’s readiness after record-breaking rainfall

Meanwhile, record rainfall struck the Arabian peninsula on April 16, resulting in flooding in Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi, and other coastal cities in the region.

This event marked the most severe occurrence of its kind in the UAE since records began in 1949, with a total of 6.04 billion cubic meters of rain recorded. Normally, the country receives around 6.7 billion cubic meters of rainfall annually.

With rainfall exceeding 100 mm within 24 hours at numerous locations—the country struggled with unparalleled flooding, affecting highways, residences, and vital infrastructure. More than four stations recorded over 200.0 mm of rain on that day. This marked the most significant rainfall event in the past 75 years.

This extreme weather event had prompted the UAE to brace for challenging weather conditions on May 2 with the nation preparing for further unstable weather conditions.

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Relevant authorities in different emirates deployed tankers, mobile pumps, and a range of machinery to address potential challenges.

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