The metropolis in the desert came to a complete stop due to what was described as the greatest rainfall in 75 years, with the busy airport finding it difficult to run its operations and the highways looking like flooded canals.
What caused the severe rains in Dubai?
The principal cause of these torrential rainfall was a storm system that passed through the Arabian peninsula and moved across the Gulf of Oman. According to a different AP article, showers could have been increased by cloud seeding, which is the process of injecting salt compounds into clouds to produce condensation and, eventually, rainfall.
“Several reports quoted meteorologists at the National Center for Meteorology as saying they flew six or seven cloud-seeding flights before the rains,” according to a story from the Associated Press.
Is the event caused by climate change?
The occurrence may possibly be caused by the world’s skyrocketing temperatures, according to some researchers. As a result of water evaporating at higher temperatures, more moisture is retained in the atmosphere due to the melting of land, oceans, and other bodies of water. Research indicates that an increase of 1 degree Celsius in the mean temperature allows the atmosphere to retain around 7% more moisture. This increases the intensity, length, and/or frequency of precipitation, which can ultimately result in severe flooding, making storms more deadly.
The UAE has seen an increase in temperature of about 1.5 degrees Celsius in the last 60 years, despite the fact that the average global temperature has grown by at least 1.1 degrees Celsius since 1850. Since the Industrial Revolution, the rise in heat-trapping greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions has been the primary cause of the temperature increase.
It is very challenging to link any specific extreme weather occurrence to climate change, though. The reason for this is that a variety of factors, including patterns of naturally occurring climatic variability like El Niño and La Niña, contribute to these kinds of events.
Important facts to know about Dubai’s position:
- 75-year wettest day: Rainfall in the state reached a maximum of 5 millimeters (10.2 inches). The rain on Tuesday was dubbed “a historic weather event” by the state-run news agency WAM, surpassing “anything documented since the start of data collection in 1949.”
- People in fear: People told terrifying stories of being stuck for hours on end; one person described how a normally quick commute on flooded roads turned into a 12-hour ordeal.
- Extreme traffic jams: Massive traffic backups were caused by the torrential downpour on the six-lane expressways, trapping stranded drivers in their cars amidst the rising floodwaters.
- Life lost: AFP reported that a person tragically lost their life at Ras Al-Khaimah while driving and was carried away by strong currents.
- Absence of power: There were reports of power outages and flooded regions all around Dubai. Some residential areas were completely inundated.
- Chaos at Dubai Airport: The airport, a major hub for international travel, was not spared, with public transportation suspended and tunnels submerged, adding to the pandemonium.
- Schools were closed: Authorities in Dubai declared that schools would be closed until the following week as the skies cleared, revealing the full magnitude of the destruction.
- Effect of cloud seeding? Amidst the chaos, concerns surfaced regarding the function of cloud seeding, a contentious method of producing rain on purpose. Meteorologists, however, opposed its use, highlighting the storm’s strength and its relationship to larger climatic cycles.
- Evacuation in progress: Authorities dispatched tanker trucks onto the roads and streets to remove the water, and some homes were inundated, requiring homeowners to save their properties.
- Climate scientists’ warning: Experts issued a warning, stressing the wider effects of climate change on extreme weather occurrences, and advised against concentrating just on cloud seeding.
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