UAE weather: motorists warned of low visibility amid dust and haze

The National Centre of Meteorology and Seismology warns motorists to drive with caution as winds kick up sand in the coming days.

Drivers are being urged to take extra care tomorrow after meteorologists warned that visibility would be reduced by sand and dust blown up by strong winds.

Al Gharbia was the latest part of the country to see rain on Saturday after a week of unsettled weather.

Overcast skies had blanketed Dubai and the Northern Emirates for seven days, with thunderstorms and heavy rain in parts of Dubai on Sunday and Monday of last week.

On Saturday it rained in Madinat Zayed, Liwa and the Western Region during the afternoon.

The highest recorded rainfall in the eastern and southern parts of the UAE was 49 millimetres over Al Khazna, between Abu Dhabi and Al Ain, a forecaster said.

"The formation of convective clouds over the country was caused by an upper-air low pressure," said Ahmed Habib, a meteorologist with the National Centre for Meteorology and Seismology.

"This led to heavy-to-moderate rain in scattered areas in the eastern and southern region of the UAE."

Similar weather conditions will persist on Tuesday.

"We expect a chance of convective clouds formation in the east and south, which means there will be a chance of strong winds, dust, sand and some rain associated with the convective clouds," Mr Habib said.

Horizontal visibility fell below 1,000 metres on Saturday. He warned drivers to take extra care, especially in open areas, due to poor visibility caused by dust and sand.

Tomorrow's weather is expected to reach a maximum of between 43°C and 48°C in the interior and about 38°C to 44°C on the coast, Mr Habib said.

Humidity will reach highs of 50 to 85 per cent in the interior, and 65 to 95 per cent on the coast.

The weather will be hazy and partly cloudy-to-cloudy at times, with increased clouds over the eastern and southern regions on Monday.

The amount of cloud cover will increase over the eastern and southern regions, with a chance of towering clouds.

Moderate winds may also freshen at times, causing blowing dust and haze over internal and open areas.