Residents rejoice at cloudy skies, rain spell

Weather expected to be hazy today, NCMS warns low visibility due to dust storms to prevail.

Residents in Al Ain and some remote areas around it got a brief respite from heat on Sunday when it rained heavily in the afternoon. However, a number of minor accidents were also reported across the country due to low visibility caused by dust storms and hazy weather.

Pedestrians cover their faces during sandstorm in Dubai on Sunday. -KT photo by Dhes Handumon

“It has been dusty and cloudy here since morning, but it started raining around 4pm. It has been very hot but now it is pleasant,” said Abdullah Siddique, a resident of Al Ain.

He also said he found it very difficult to see because of poor visibility caused by dust blowing near Al Khazna while driving from Al Wathba to Al Ain. Another resident Abdul Malek said it was still raining until late evening in nearby areas around Jebel Hafeet.

According to Oasis City resident Zahir Ahmed: “Around 4pm it began raining heavily which also caused many roads and streets to flood.” Another resident of Al Wajan reported similar weather conditions. Waleed Al Balushi said: “The rain was a good escape from the high temperatures. It has been very hot over the last few days. Today was also very hot but with the rain now the weather is much better. We are really enjoying the weather and now out in the desert with family members.”

In the rest of the emirate, including Abu Dhabi city and its suburbs, it was dusty with high temperatures. However, no rain was reported in the city.

The most dust affected areas were Al Khazna and Al Wathba, where visibility was poor due to dust.

In Dubai and Sharjah, severe dust storms, hazy weather, and high levels of humidity were experienced, while parts of the city reported light rains. The National Centre of Meteorology and Seismology (NCMS) warned drivers of low visibility caused by dust over parts of the UAE.

Residents and motorists said they experienced some discomfort while driving on Al Khail Road, Al Ittihad Road, Shaikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road, and other major roads on Sunday afternoon. The weather report on the NCMS website suggested that moderate to fresh winds are causing blowing dust/sand over some areas.

The weather for today is expected to be hazy and partly cloudy especially over the eastern areas, with a chance of some towering clouds over the eastern areas by afternoon may extend to the internal areas, according to NCMS. However, NCMS has assured that moderate to fresh winds, causing blowing dust/sand will prevail over some of the inside areas.

news@khaleejtimes.com

(With additional inputs from Dhanusha Gokulan)