Flooded kitchen, ceiling waterfall: UAE tenants struggle with non-stop leaks at villas, flats

Residents were urged to stay home this weekend in anticipation of bad weather. While some were enjoying their books and hot cocoa on a rainy Saturday morning, others were not as lucky.

Some expats woke up to a nightmare at home: Flooded kitchens, bedrooms, and bathrooms.

They scrambled for big towels to place near the door to stop the water from coming in. Some placed buckets in their kitchens to collect the water the drizzled through the roof.

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French expat Christine Quartier La Tente was extremely frustrated as she saw the rain pouring down her townhouse's ceiling.

Her balcony turned into a pond as gushed through the pipe.

“It's a real struggle for tenants and owners. We're constantly sealing windows, and waterproofing roofs more than once, and even then, new leaks keep popping up, often due to structural issues," Christine said. "Locating and fixing these problems takes time – it takes many rainy seasons to check it all and get it sorted.”

The expat, who lives in Dubai's Damac Hills 2, lamented how tenants often had to shoulder the burden of fixing a home they do not own.

"[They have to deal with repairs] that landlords are unwilling to cover. A friend of mine is even leaving her house at the end of her rental year due to these persistent issues,” Christine said.

Since it would take some time before a handyman could come in, Christine came up with a creative way to collect water from the ceiling. She taped a yarn, through which the water could flow straight into a bucket.

Ninu Hyder, a resident of Jumeirah, had to deal with a water puddle in her kitchen for the first time.

“The floor of my kitchen is not slanted enough, so the water kept accumulating," she said.

"I was in the kitchen for more than an hour with my wiper trying to get the water to drain. Then I spread some towels on the floor. It has luckily stopped now.”

Lesson learnt

Soobi Shine, a resident of Falconcity of Wonders, is dreading the clean-up work she had to after the rain.

“My entire garden is flooded and there is water everywhere,” she said. “The rain has been falling incessantly. I think it’s going to be a few days before I can completely clean up the mess.”

However, Soobi is thankful that the water has not entered her house.

“Due to several previous rains, we learned our lesson,” she said. “We have a waterproof coating on our roofs and we unclogged our drains during the last train. That’s why we are peacefully enjoying the rain now,” she added.

Ahmed Waqas, a resident of Al Majaz in Sharjah, complained of having to deal with leaks over and over again.

“It's quite frustrating to discover a leak in my apartment every time it rains,” said Waqas.

“Despite my efforts to address the issue, the recurring leaks have become a source of constant concern. Finally, with today’s rain, we managed to find the root cause. This had impacted both my living conditions and peace of mind,” he added.

“I have spoken to the landlord to fix this issue and finally it will done soon,” added Waqas.

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