The United Arab Emirates faced its heaviest recorded level of rainfall which caused severe flooding and disrupted operations at the world’s busiest airport for international traffic on Wednesday, while flash flooding in neighboring Oman killed more than a dozen people.
Vehicles sit abandoned in floodwater covering a major road in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Meteorological authorities in the UAE described the severe downpour as “an exceptional event” with one area receiving as much as 10 inches (254 mm) of rainfall in a 24 hour period, the state-run WAM news agency reported.
The extreme weather dumped more than a year’s worth of rainfall on the country’s largest city, Dubai, flooding roads and highways.
Operations at the Dubai International Airport, the world’s busiest hub for international air traffic, were also disrupted by the rains as videos on social media showed planes taxiing on flooded runways.
The airport was forced to divert several inbound flights and urged people to not come to the airport unless it was absolutely necessary, according to local media reports.
The country’s flag carrier, Emirates, has suspended check-ins for all passengers flying out of Dubai until midnight on Thursday due to “operational issues.”
Heavy rains also lashed neighboring Oman on Tuesday, with some parts of the country receiving more than 7 inches of rain since the start of the week. The severe weather triggered flash flooding in parts of the country, causing at least 18 deaths, national emergency authorities said. The death toll includes an infant and ten school children whose school bus was swept away by flood waters.