“Schools and parents can decide what’s best for their children, students and staff”…

You might have noticed a bit of commotion outside in the early hours of the morning.

As a storm front swept across Dubai, the city was buffeted by high winds, that horizontal, straight-in-your-face sort of rain and flashes of lightning. A pretty dramatic watch from the window, but less than ideal conditions for driving.

Dubai storms

The National Centre for Meterology (NCM) issued an orange ‘Be Prepared’ alert, which urges residents to be on the look out for hazardous weather events.

With the forecasts in, the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MoHRE) in the UAE, yesterday called for private sector companies in the country to offer “flexible working patterns where possible”.

Driving in the rain

And whilst, the general advice is to avoid all travel where possible, The Dubai Police did issue some guidelines on how to drive safely in the rain. This also applies to you, Mustang drivers.

What’s On would also like to kindly suggest that, at least as long as the rain continues – to avoid making orders for delivery, or if unavoidable, to at least be respectful of the fact your shawarma might take a little longer to get to you that normal.

Are the schools off?

The Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA), which oversees the administrative functions of private education in Dubai, did release a gif-enhanced statement via X, authroising parents and schools to do what they deem best for “their children, students and staff”.

There have already been some pretty theatrical videos of the rain shared on social media, with the NCM warning of potential flash flooding in northern and Eastern parts of the country.

Stay safe out there Dubai.

Images: Getty