DUBAI (Web Desk) – Several flights were cancelled and schools and offices were closed due to heavy rains that returned to United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Thursday and Friday.
Authorities asked students to study from home. People working at offices were also asked to operate remotely. The MeT department had issued an orange alert for Thursday as heavy rains and thunderstorms lashed the UAE.
The UAE authorities had asked schools to start distance learning and companies to allow people to work from home. The Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) announced that the decision applied to all private schools, nurseries, and universities.
Dubai announced work-from-home for government employees on May 2 and May 3. Parks and beaches were shut.
Emirates cancelled several flights on Thursday due to bad weather across the UAE. A Flydubai spokesperson told Khaleej Times that the “adverse weather conditions in Dubai on Thursday have caused some delays to their operations".
India's IndiGo said its flight operations had been affected by bad weather in Dubai, Sharjah, Ras Al Khaimah, and Abu Dhabi. Vistara and SpiceJet also said that departures, arrivals, and flights would be impacted by inclement weather.
Last month's downpour, the heaviest in UAE since records began in 1949, flooding overwhelmed the UAE’s drainage systems. Many residents lost their belongings when their homes flooded, and the flooding waters destroyed many cars.
Dubai International Airport, the world’s busiest for international travel, needed 22 tankers with vacuum pumps to get water off its grounds.
According to the Khaleej Times, generally fair and partly cloudy weather was expected over eastern and southeastern areas on Friday.
The National Centre of Meteorology (NCM) expected the night to be humid, with a gradual rise in temperature from Saturday.
The temperature will surge up to 38 degrees Celsius and 35 degrees Celsius in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, respectively.The weather department has also projected light to moderate winds, which may cause dust and sand to blow over.