Rain in UAE: Flights cancelled, roads flooded as rare storm drenches Dubai, Sharjah, Qatar

UAE airport authorities canceled or delayed dozens of flights and roads were flooded in major cities as the desert country received its heaviest rainfall in months on Friday (December 19, 2025).

Dubai’s Emirates airline canceled 13 flights on Friday (December 19, 2025) and there were also delays and cancellations at neighboring Sharjah’s airport after overnight rain caused residents to wake up to flashes of lightning and loud sounds of thunder.

Sharjah’s main road was completely flooded on Friday morning (December 19, 2025), and residents were seen walking through it barefoot. A man rode his bicycle through water, which reached above its wheels.

The scenes brought back memories of April 2024, when record rainfall led to widespread flooding and the cancellation of more than 2,000 flights at Dubai’s major international air hub.

On Thursday (December 18, 2025), Dubai Police had urged residents to stay inside unless “absolutely necessary” as the storm approached.

On Friday morning (December 19, 2025), water-pumping trucks were seen around Dubai clearing blocked roads and large potholes on roads.

Dubai Airports’ website showed dozens of flights were delayed and some canceled on Friday.

“Some flights… have been canceled or delayed due to adverse weather,” a Dubai Airports spokesperson said.

The National Meteorological Center had warned of rain across the country, including Dubai and the capital Abu Dhabi, from Thursday to Friday.

Heavy rain also hit other Gulf states, including Qatar, where the Arab Cup football third-place play-off between Saudi Arabia and the UAE was canceled on Thursday.

Last year’s heavy rains in the United Arab Emirates, the heaviest since records began 76 years ago, killed at least four people and brought Dubai to a standstill for days.

A study published by the World Weather Attribution Group found that global warming caused by fossil fuel emissions increased the intense rainfall that occurred in the United Arab Emirates and Oman last year.