Hail in El Ain in the United Arab Emirates, February 2024/photo: X
If you thought that the Persian Gulf was a hot area in summer as well as in winter - think again: a winter storm accompanied by large hail that falls from the sky has arrived in the United Arab Emirates.
For example, the city of Al-Ain in the east of the Emirates was filled yesterday (Monday) with white hail that washed its streets and roads.
Documentation that surfaced on social media shows heavy hail falling at night as if it were cannonballs in the sky, with "explosive" sounds as the large white balls hit the ground, houses and machinery in the city.
"The Storm Chaser"
The United Arab Emirates sometimes experiences stormy weather conditions in the winter, and the residents of Al Ain are usually used to stormy weather, which is accompanied by hail during this period, and even they were surprised by the intensity of the phenomenon.
The country's best-known "storm chaser," Fahad Muhammad Abdul Rahman, did not disappoint and shared several videos of excited residents - both adults and children - having hail fights and cheering as they survey the hail-laden terrain after the intense storm.
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A post shared by Storm Center for Monitoring Weather and Climate Change founder omar alnauimi (@storm_ae)
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Storm Center for Monitoring Weather and Climate Change founder omar alnauimi (@storm_ae)
"Extraordinary at this time of year"
"Two weeks ago, the weather suddenly warmed up, which is unusual at this time of the year," said Fahad. Afterwards, there was a short period with gusts of air in Shamal, followed by warm weather again.
This usually means that an unusual phenomenon may happen."
And indeed, Fahd was in the Al Tiwaya area to see hail flowing both on the streets and in the desert. He said the heavy hailstorm started around 5 a.m. and lasted for more than an hour. "It was massive.
The ice was enormous in size, something we had not seen before in this part of the area.
Many cars were damaged.
Fortunately, people were sleeping at that time so they were safe."
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United Arab Emirates
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