UAE allocates $544.6m to deal with storm damage to homes, PM says

Vehicles hardly move on flooded streets due to heavy rain in Dubai, United Arab Emirates on April 16, 2024 [Stringer/Anadolu Agency]

The United Arab Emirates’ cabinet has approved 2 billion dirhams ($544.60 million) to deal with damage to homes from last week’s storm, Prime Minister and Dubai ruler, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, said on Wednesday, Reuters reports.

The UAE suffered the heaviest rains this month in 75 years, causing widespread flooding which trapped residents in traffic, offices and homes, and leaving many people counting the cost of damage to vehicles and property.

Rains are uncommon in the UAE, which is known for its hot desert climate and temperatures that can soar above 50 degrees Celsius in the summer.

President Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan ordered authorities last week to assess the damage and provide support to families impacted by the storm, UAE state news agency, WAM, had said.

READ: Flooded UAE counts cost of epic rainstorm; Airport still facing disruptions

Unless otherwise stated in the article above, this work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. If the image(s) bear our credit, this license also applies to them. What does that mean? For other permissions, please contact us.