UAE Flash Floods: Record Rainfall Triggers Airport Closure
The United Arab Emirates, a country known for its deserts, spent Wednesday cleaning up after a massive downpour. This was the most rain ever recorded in the country, and it caused flooding that shut down Dubai International Airport, the busiest airport for international travel in the world. Many flights were disrupted.
A government news agency in the UAE called the recent rain an unprecedented weather event. They said it was the heaviest rainfall ever recorded in the country, even surpassing any data they have since they started collecting it in 1949. This downpour happened way before the discovery of oil turned the region into the wealthy nation it is today. Back then, it was part of a British protectorate called the Trucial States.
While other countries in the region like Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia also experienced rain, it was the United Arab Emirates that got hit the hardest.
The heavy rain could be partly due to a government program called “cloud seeding.” In this program, airplanes release flares containing special salts into clouds, which might make it rain more.
UAE Flash Floods: Record Rainfall Triggers Airport Closure
Heavy rain in UAE: Cloud seeding a possible factor
- Record Rainfall: UAE experienced its heaviest rain ever recorded, causing flooding and airport disruptions.
- Cloud Seeding Suspected: Government program using airplanes and salt flares to increase rain may have contributed.
- Conflicting Reports: Meteorologists suggest pre-rain cloud seeding flights, while official denies activity on the heaviest rain day.
- Water Scarcity Motivation: Arid UAE relies on desalination and seeks ways to increase limited groundwater.
