Weather chaos as deadly storms and torrential rain lash the Gulf
•18 dead in Oman •Dubai paralyzed by floods •Saudi weather chiefs warn more to come
Swaths of the Gulf were gripped by weather chaos on Tuesday as deadly storms and torrential rain flooded roads, homes and shopping malls.
In Oman, the death toll rose to 18 when a child’s body was recovered, and two people are still missing. Earlier, nine schoolchildren and three adults died when their vehicles were swept away in flash floods.
Meteorology chiefs in Saudi Arabia forecast more heavy rain and high winds on Wednesday after the Eastern Province, Qassim region and Riyadh suffered storms and flooding on Tuesday.
Schools in several parts of the Kingdom were closed, and introduced online classes.
Civil Defense and traffic authorities urged caution on the roads. Dubai was paralyzed by the storm, with skies already dark by mid-afternoon.
All operations at the city’s airport, the world’s busiest international hub, were initially suspended for 25 minutes and more than 50 flights were canceled.
Later, all arriving flights were diverted, although departures continued to operate as normal. Flagship shopping centers Dubai Mall and Mall of the Emirates both suffered flooding, and water was ankle deep in at least one Dubai Metro station.
Roads and residential communities suffered heavy flooding, with major highways under water, snarling traffic and leaving cars stranded. Some inland desert areas of the UAE recorded more than 80 millimeters of rain in 24 hours, approaching the usual annual total of about 100 millimeters.
The storms were expected to continue on Wednesday, the UAE’s National Center of Meteorology said. It urged residents to “take all precautions ... and stay away from areas of flooding and water accumulation.”
The Asian Champions League football semifinal between Al-Hilal of Saudi Arabia and Al-Ain of the UAE, which was due to take place in Al Ain, was postponed.
Bahrain was also hit by heavy rain and flooding after being pummeled by thunder and lightning overnight.
“I like to play in the rain, but for the first time it scared me,” said Ali Hassan, 9, as he helped his mother clear water from outside their house in Manama.
“I was terrified by the sound of thunder and the sky was lit by lightning. I had never seen anything like this, so I hid with my mother ... the sound of rain scared me.” Elsewhere, at least 33 people were killed over three days of heavy rain and flash flooding in Afghanistan. Most casualties were from roof collapses.
About 600 homes were damaged or destroyed, nearly 600 km of road demolished, and about 2,000 acres of farmland washed away.
UAE authorities sent tanker trucks out into the streets and highways to pump away the water. Water poured into some homes, forcing people to bail out their houses.