There were 870 people rescued by emergency teams due to heavy rains in Sharjah and Fujairah, government officials said on Thursday.
No casualties or deaths were reported.
Over 3,800 people were relocated to temporary shelters across the flood-affected areas by the ministry of community development.
The ministry has coordinated with over 20 hotels to provide 827 housing units to over 1,885 people nationwide adding buses and other means of transportation will be available to help transport families.
Over 50 buses are placed on standby in case of any further developments.
Weather officials also reported that the flash floods in Fujairah was the first of its kind in 30 years.
Authorities assured the public that emergency and clean-up teams are working swiftly to help those affected by the flash floods adding, 130 volunteers are working to reduce further damage.
NCEMA spokesperson Dr. Taher Al Ameri, also urged the public, “to follow the instructions of relevant authorities, be careful and commit to instructions to not leave their homes, most notably in affected areas, affirming the need for people to drive cautiously and avoid floods and difficult mountain areas,” in a media briefing held on Thursday.
He added that the public refrain from spreading rumours about the ongoing weather conditions, adding that they only follow announcements and information shared on official government platforms on social media.
Dr. Mohammed Al Abri, Spokesperson for the National Centre of Meteorology (NCM) explained that the weather conditions across the northern areas of the UAE was the result of “an upper and surface air depression from northern India through southern Pakistan, coinciding with the movement of the orbital convergence line towards the north of the Arabian Gulf.”
Al Abri said this affected the flow of clouds from the Oman Sea towards the UAE, “combined with cumulus rain clouds accompanied by lightning and thunder sometimes,” adding the weather conditions have weakened since Wednesday.
Ministry of Interior’s spokesperson Brigadier Al Tunaiji also took the briefing to commend the efforts of those working around the clock to ensure safety, adding that any damages were “limited to material losses only.”
As per the latest weather report issued by the NCM, weather conditions are expected to be slightly better on Friday with a chance of rain in some areas of the nation.
The NCM also added “the sea will be rough to moderate in the Arabian Gulf and moderate to slight in the Oman Sea.”
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