Authorities and communities across the United Arab Emirates are clearing debris after a torrential downpour killed at least one person and caused damage to homes and businesses.
The UAE witnessed a record rainfall with 254mm falling in Al Ain yesterday in less than 24 hours, according to the national meteorology centre.
That was the most since records began in 1949, before the country was established in 1971.
Although heavy rains had eased by last night, disruptions are continuing with Emirates airline suspending check-in for passengers departing Dubai airport until midnight.
Dubai International Airport, one of the world's busiest, said it was facing significant disruptions after the heavy rains delayed or diverted flights and impacted flight crews.
Passengers departing Dubai were advised against heading to the airport and to check their flight status with their airline.
'Nobody is there to say anything'
One passenger, Thomas Gavin, is in Dubai Airport awaiting a connection flight to Dublin, having landed in from Hanoi, Vietnam, this morning.
The Dublin connection was due to leave at 7.20am but has been delayed to 2pm local time, according to the latest update he has received.
Speaking to RTÉ News, Mr Gavin said he has been sitting at the gate "and it keeps getting delayed by half an hour or an hour at a time".
He added: "Nobody is there to say anything, we are just getting updates on the screen at the gate, and get automatic email updates."
Mr Gavin said the airline emailed passengers vouchers to buy food, but that some of the outlets are low on stock.
He said the effects of the flooding itself are not obvious from the airport, but that staffing seems to be an issue and he has heard taxis are not bringing people to and from the airport.
In a post on X, Dubai Airport said it was "working hard to recover operations as quickly as possible in very challenging conditions."
Passengers warned of long delays
Emirates said passengers who were already in transit would continue to be processed but warned that delays to departures and arrivals should be expected.
The Dubai airport website showed hours-long delays for some arrival and departure flights.
Local media reported that an elderly Emirati man in his 70s died yesterday morning when his vehicle was caught in flash floods in the Ras Al Khaimah emirate, in the country's north.
In neighbouring Oman, 19 people died, including school children after three consecutive days of heavy rain, according to Omani media, which published images of flooded communities.
The Times of Oman reported that more rain was expected later today.
In Dubai, the skies were clear but in some areas, the roads were quiet after the government ordered its employees and all schools to work remotely for a second consecutive day.
UAE media and social media posts showed significant damage from the torrential downpours in some parts of the country, including collapsed roads and homes inundated by water.
Social media posts showed flooded roads and car parks with some vehicles completely submerged. Sheikh Zayed Road, a 12-lane highway through Dubai, was partially flooded, leaving people stuck in a kilometres-long traffic jam for hours.
'Whole city went black'
Irish woman Amanda Gavin described the flooding as "catastrophic".
Ms Gavin, who has been living in Dubai for 11 years, said the "whole city went black" yesterday before the torrential rain began.
Speaking to RTÉ's News at One, Ms Gavin said it was like "something I'd never seen before" and said it has caused "a lot of upset" for homes and businesses.
She said Dubai's infrastructure could not handle the amount of rainfall.
"We had flooding in our villa, the whole top floor flooded because the drains got blocked," she said.
"It was kind of a case of trying to keep water at bay from destroying the whole house."
Ms Gavin said those in her home "managed to get it sorted and under control" late last night when the rain stopped.
"It's a lot of damage to a lot of properties, including our own," she said.
Cars submerged in water
Leigh Ralph, a football coach from Tuam in Co Galway, lives in Dubai.
"It's definitely the worst storm I've seen in my lifetime," he told RTÉ News, explaining that the entire city was "thrown into darkness" at about 3pm yesterday.
He said it was "like an eclipse" with heavy rain downpours, thunder and lightning.
"It's definitely like something I never saw before here, in Ireland or the UK. It's much more severe," he said.
"The authorities compared it to, I think, five months worth of rain in London falling in one day. So you can imagine the carnage and the chaos that followed."
Mr Ralph's mother had been on holidays visiting him at the time and did not manage to board her return flight this morning.
He said he spent almost three hours trying to drive through the floods to get her to the airport today but the roads were treacherous and he could only pass because he was driving an SUV.
He said the local authorities had done a great job guiding everyone on the roads as best they could.
"Cars were submerged in water. I've never seen anything like that before, cars abandoned on the road," he said.
