Thundershowers, clouds may pepper UAE skies till Thursday

The NCM also appealed to members of the society to follow its bulletins and not circulate rumours

The National Centre of Meteorology (NCM) has said that the country, from Sunday until Thursday, will be affected by an extension of a surface low-pressure system, accompanied by a weak upper air low-pressure system with formation of cumulus clouds accompanied by rainfall, especially on the eastern and southern parts.

It also expects the weather from Sunday to Thursday to see lightning and thunder in some eastern and southern areas and Al Ain city. Some inland and western areas may also be hit by rainfall, with a gradual decrease in temperatures, the NCM added.

Explaining the reasons for the rainfall during the summer, the NCM said that the country is being currently affected by the extension of the Indian seasonal depression, and thermal depressions from the southwest. This leads to a noticeable rise in temperature and catalyses formation of cumulus clouds over the eastern areas of the country. And with the high temperatures, the cumulus rainy clouds develop in the aternoon, and then move towards the inland areas, causing rainfall, the NCM added.

The Centre also confirmed that it was monitoring the situation around the clock and would continue to brief the people on the latest developments, calling on road users and motorists to exercise precautions when driving during rain, and to avoid nearing surface runoffs and pools of rainwater. It also appealed to members of the society to follow the bulletins and reports issued by the NCM and not to circulate rumours.

Separate areas of the country witnessed, on Saturday, blowing of active southeasterly winds, with a speed of 40 km/hr, and rough seas, where the waves reached 6 feet high offshore in the Arabian Gulf, the NCM reported

It also indicated that the lowest temperature in the country on Sunday was 23.8°C in Jebel Jais, Ras Al Khaimah at 04:30 am, while the highest temperature reached 47.9°C in Sweihan in Al Ain city at 3:15 pm.

The NCM also expects the weather on Sunday to be fair to partly cloudy, with a chance of convective cloud formations eastward and southward by aternoon, associated with rainfall. The winds will be light to moderate southeasterly, becoming to northwesterly, freshening at times blowing dust during daytime, with a speed of 15 – 25 reaching 40 km/hr. The waves will be slight to moderate in the Arabian Gulf and in the Sea of Oman.

The weather on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday is expected to remain partly cloudy to cloudy at times, with a chance of convective cloud formations eastward and southward by aternoon, associated with rainfall. Light to moderate southeasterly, becoming northwesterly winds, freshening at times blowing dust and sand, with a speed of 15 – 25 reaching 40 km/hr were likely. The waves will be slight to moderate in the Arabian Gulf and in Oman Sea.

Following the exceptional two-day adverse weather conditions, which resulted in flooding in many areas in the Emirate of Sharjah, officials praised the efficient response and competence of emergency teams mobilised to safeguard lives and property against the severe impact of the heavy rainfall.

The emirate had braced up to address this anticipated summer deluge by monitoring potential risks and reviewing federal response plans to ensure the readiness of emergency crews and mechanisms and spread awareness and safety tips.

More than 3,400 rescue and evacuation operations were conducted in the eastern regions of the emirate by the Sharjah Police General Headquarters, which received and handled more than 10,782 emergency calls, with the full support of 503 crew members, 101 emergency vehicles and 45 patrols.

Teams from the National Emergency Crisis and Disasters Management Authority (NCEMA) partnered with relevant local and federal authorities, including the Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Community Development, Sharjah Civil Defence Authority, and private sector entities to pre-emptively prepare for potential effects of the dire weather conditions.

Brigadier General Abdullah Mubarak Bin Amir, Deputy Commander-in-chief of Sharjah Police, praised the concerted efforts between the various federal entities and the Sharjah Police, which enabled the emirate to face hazardous weather of exceptional severity at the nationwide level.