Record-breaking rainfall in Dubai and surrounding areas in the United Arab Emirates on Monday and Tuesday flooded Dubai International Airport and caused widespread travel disruption across the region.
More than 142 millimeters of rain had been dumped on Dubai over 24 hours, starting late Monday. An average year sees 94.7 millimeters of rain at the city's main airport—the world's busiest hub for international travel—according to The Associated Press.
The state-run WAM news agency described it as "a historic weather event" that exceeded "anything documented since the start of data collection in 1949."
Travel Chaos
Videos and pictures shared on social media show roads and airport runways that resemble rivers.
On Wednesday morning, Dubai International Airport advised people "NOT to come to the airport, unless absolutely necessary." It said flights were still being delayed and diverted.
"We are working hard to recover operations as quickly as possible in very challenging conditions," the airport added in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
Dubai is experiencing flooding due to cloud seeding. Playing God with nature is a huge problem as we saw yesterday. Never assume one can control the natural order. Dubai is a desert and what comes comes, if rain doesn't come on its own accord, then it doesn't. It is what it is pic.twitter.com/i5EskUuYFZ
— Red Dragoon (@The_Red_Dragoon) April 17, 2024
UK-based journalist Abi Cramp, who was on vacation in Dubai and was due to fly back on Tuesday, told Newsweek that she might not be able to get a flight until April 24.
"I'm literally stuck," she said. "Yesterday felt like the end of the world with the storm, the aftermath feels like a scene from Titanic with all the flooding."
Cramp described how elevators and other electrical systems had gone down, landslides had impacted the beaches, and most businesses were closed.
"The airlines have been less than useless and it's all very confusing," she added.
Severe rain in neighboring Oman triggered flash flooding that has left more than a dozen people dead, authorities said, including 10 children who were swept away in a vehicle.
Cloud Seeding Concerns
Concerns have been raised regarding the potential role of cloud seeding in this unusual weather event.
The UAE has an active cloud-seeding program aimed at enhancing rainfall, but there has been no official confirmation linking recent seeding activities to the extraordinary levels of rainfall.
Typically, cloud seeding in the UAE involves dispersing substances into the atmosphere that serve as cloud condensation or ice nuclei, which can lead to precipitation. Reports suggested several cloud seeding flights took place before the downpour.
The effectiveness of the technique to encourage precipitation is the subject of much debate, and issues have been raised about its environmental impact. Ethically, there are debates about the fairness of manipulating weather patterns, which could lead to conflicts over water rights and unintended consequences in regions downstream or adjacent to seeded areas.
The recent deluge has underscored the challenges of managing extreme weather events in the region, which has historically seen sparse rainfall.
In response to past flooding and its impacts, the UAE government has invested in infrastructure projects aimed at enhancing flood control and stormwater management.
Newsweek has contacted the government of Dubai via email for comment.
