‘This was so severe, it was like the apocalypse’ – Irish soccer goalie on the deluges in Dubai

Passengers left stranded in UAE as aircraft submerged on airport runway

An Irishman living in Dubai said he witnessed a weather event “like the apocalypse” as the sky was plunged into darkness, roads collapsed and sinkholes opened up during unprecedented flooding.

Many Irish workers in the UAE city were off work until at least today following the shocking scenes.

Others are trying to get home from holidays but are stranded after Dubai airport was flooded so badly that the landing strip resembled a lake.

Some Irish workers reported being stuck in their homes, as the worst storm they’ve ever seen hit the city.

Professional soccer player Leigh Ralph (33) from Tuam, Co Galway, described a doomsday-like spectacle. He said the sky went “dark and it looked like an eclipse” in the UAE’s sunshine city.

Mr Ralph attempted to drive his mother, Mags Mulvey, to the airport yesterday morning for a flight to Dublin. She is stuck in Dubai as flights were cancelled.

After a series of storms, bringing ferocious wind and rainfall, some aeroplanes looked semi-submerged on the runway in the city’s main airport.

“This was so severe,” Mr Ralph said. “It was like the apocalypse. Our building was closed as the carpark basement flooded.

“I drove in an SUV to the airport as the clean-up was under way. It’s a 20-minute journey but it took two hours and 50 minutes to get back home.”

The goalkeeper at Fleetwood United in Dubai – a sister club to English side Fleetwood Town – added: “A good few roads are impassable. I saw about 250 cars abandoned in floodwater. The police and military are doing all they can.

“The authorities are doing a great job cleaning up and helping people. But it’s chaotic. The police have been great, directing and helping people. But this is an act of God and honestly, this is climate change.

“Living in Ireland, I’ve seen storms but I’ve never seen anything like this. The authorities did give plenty of warning that this storm was coming.

“This has caused mudslides and roads to collapse. I love Dubai. I have a great life here and I know the clean-up is under way and the sunshine is out, but it was scary.

“And I’m lucky that my mother has me to stay with because there’s so many passengers just stuck at the airport.”

Mr Ralph’s team have just been promoted, winning 20 out of their 26 games on their way to winning the UAE’s Second Division title.

“Life is great,” he said. “And things will be back to normal soon, but it’s definitely a huge reminder about climate change.

“We had five months of rain in London in one day here. It’s unheard of.”

The Galwegian has lived in Dubai since 2019 and said it barely ever rains.

But after this, people will be urged to take precautions they never even considered before.

“There’s sinkholes, roads have collapsed and the authorities are warning people not to go near puddles as there could be electrical problems,” he said.

“Shops, apartments, and cars have been destroyed by the flooding. I feel so sorry for people who haven’t got insurance because it may be seen as an act of God.”

Jack Burke (27) and his partner Viki Langan (28), from Rush, north Co Dublin, live in a second-floor apartment in Sports City in Dubai.

Ms Langan, a physio, said her clinic had been closed, with patients being warned that roads were too dangerous for staff to get to patients.

“Hopefully it’ll be better in the next few days,” she said.

Before the storm, the couple had taken weather warnings “with a pinch of salt”. However, once it started, they looked on from their apartments and realised it was unlike anything they’d ever seen.

Mr Burke, a Middle East market adviser for Bord Bia, said: “It was really windy when the rain came down. From my balcony, you could barely see the yard below.

“It’s more so the aftermath now. It’s very sandy in places here and once water spilled onto roads, sand covered the roads.

“It looks like the place has been destroyed, but the authorities are very good and will get things cleaned up quickly.”

The couple tried to go for a stroll yesterday and found they could “barely pass” the road.

“I fell into a massive puddle and ruined my shoes,” Mr Burke said. “But seeing pictures of the airport, I feel really lucky that we were at home.

“There was a couple of times on Tuesday when I was a bit worried, but we are lucky – we don’t have any leaks.

“You see things like this happening all over the world but you don’t want to be living in it. It’s like a natural disaster.”

The couple have lived in Dubai for a year and love their lifestyle there.

“This was something we never thought we’d see,” Mr Burke said.

“There’s a canal across from us. It overflowed and the roads beside us flooded.

“A football pitch across from us is completely covered in water – it’s a pool. A piece of road near us has collapsed. A car parked on that road fell into a sinkhole.”

Despite the weather emergency, the couple are determined to enjoy their lives in Dubai.

From today on, they hope their only weather concerns relate to how warm it gets in the summer.