Heavy downpour gives Al Ain cool respite

33.6mm of rain in Jebel Hafeet, but hot weather set to stay in other parts of country

Ja n i c e P onc e d e L e on

Over an hour of heavy rain accompanied by thunder and lightning in the eastern part of the country provided residents with temporary relief from the scorching heat late in the afternoon yesterday.

The National Centre of Meteorology and Seismology (NCMS) recorded 33.6mm of rain over the Jebel Hafeet area where it rained for one and a half hours.

The temperature in Jebel Hafeet dropped sharply by 10 degrees Celsius with cool winds blowing in. Next to Jebel Hafeet, Mezyed, a town in Al Ain, received up to 11.6mm of rain.

Scattered rain was recorded in other parts of the Eastern Region as well.

A weather forecaster

told

that the rain was caused by surface winds coming from the Oman Sea which were obstructed by the Hajar Mountains. Air currents were pushed up the slopes causing condensation and formation of convective clouds.

NCMS recorded cloud accumulation up to a height of 14 kilometres.

NCMS has sought to alert motorists in the Eastern Region to exercise caution while outdoors as roads may be slippery and surface visibility dropped by 400 metres over Al Ain Airport and neighbouring areas.

General forecast

NCMS said thunderstorms in the Eastern Region are not unusual during peak summer. Some convective clouds may form in the coming days with chances of more rain.

Weather in the rest of the country today will remain hot to very hot in general, with temperatures ranging between 42C and 47C. Humidity will be highest in the coastal areas, ranging between 60 and 90 per cent.