Arid Gulf states hit with year's worth of rain
The historic flooding in Dubai is tied to climate change
What happened
Heavy rain and flooding battered the Persian Gulf region late Monday and Tuesday, dousing Dubai with a year and a half's worth of rain, killing at least 18 people in Oman and prompting flight cancellations and school closures in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Who said what
"Recovery will take some time," said Dubai International Airport, the world's second busiest. It's "absolute carnage" at the airport, one couple said to The Associated Press. "There's people sleeping in the Metro station. There's people sleeping in the airport."
The commentary
"Rain is unusual in the UAE, an arid, Arabian Peninsula nation," the AP said, so "many roads and other areas lack drainage." Torrential rainfall events like this "will become more frequent due to human-driven climate change," CNN said. For every 1 degree rise in average temperature, the atmosphere can hold about 7% more moisture, said the BBC, resulting in "more droplets and heavier rainfall, sometimes in a shorter space of time."
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What next?
Another wave of heavy rain is forecast for Wednesday, and the UAE canceled school again and instituted remote work.
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