Abu Dhabi and Dubai were hit by heavy rain, thunder and lightning on Thursday.
Residents were woken up by rumbles of thunder as cracks of lightning lit up the skies from about 1.30am.
The weather had calmed significantly by about 5am, before another bout of intense rain began shortly before 8am.
Further rain was recorded in the Northern Emirates in the morning.
The National Centre of Meteorology issued an orange alert – warning of hazardous weather events – for large parts of the country until 8pm on Thursday.
The centre had earlier advised that the unstable weather would be less severe than the storms which battered the Emirates on April 16.
Trees upended
But the persistent rain caused flooding on roads in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, with trees upended by high winds, and flights and public transport services disrupted.
Dubai International Airport said 13 flights were cancelled and five diverted before normal service resumed later on Thursday evening.
Passengers were advised to use the Dubai Metro to reach the airport because of traffic jams.
“If you're flying from Dubai International Airport today, please allow extra time to get to the airport as there's some congestion on the roads,” Dubai Airports wrote on X.
“Use the Dubai Metro to get to Terminals 1 and 3, where possible.”
Emirates Airline said on Thursday that six flights – between Dubai and Istanbul, Johannesburg, Nairobi, Cairo, Amman and Singapore – had been cancelled due to the bad weather.
“We sincerely apologise for any inconvenience. Affected customers will be reaccommodated,” Emirates said in a travel update on its website.
Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority said intercity bus services had been temporarily suspended.
The authority said a number of ferry routes were also suspended on Thursday.
These included services to and from the Dubai Water Canal to Al Ghubaiba, Dubai Water Canal to Bluewaters and Al Ghubaiba to Sharjah Aquarium.
Dubai Municipality announced beaches, public parks and open markets would be closed on Thursday.
Police in Abu Dhabi and Dubai urged motorists to exercise caution if they had to drive.
Abu Dhabi Police reduced speed limits to 100kph on some routes – including sections of the Abu Dhabi-Al Ain Road – during the morning commute as a safety precaution.
The force said normal speed limits had been restored on external roads, in a social media message posted shortly before 1pm.
Safety alert after landslide
Ras Al Khaimah Police urged drivers to take care on Emirates Road, towards the Al Shuhada Road exit, following a landslide.
The police said they were closely monitoring the situation and advised motorists to stay alert and follow traffic guidance to ensure their safety and those of others.
Maj Gen Saif Al Zari Al Shamsi, commander-in-chief of Sharjah Police, said in a local radio interview on Thursday afternoon that traffic was flowing smoothly in the emirate and no road closures were in place.
He said authorities were working to prevent further flooding in the emirate.
Ready for the rain
Last month the country experienced record rainfall that flooded roads and homes and caused widespread disruption to public transport and airport travel.
The recent hazardous weather prompted authorities to ensure plans were in place to deal with the stormy conditions.
The clean-up operation is well under way on main roads and communities in Dubai, including the deployment of tankers to drain floodwater from streets.
Dubai Police had sent out a mobile phone alert on Wednesday evening, urging the public to be vigilant and stay safe.
The notice advised people to “avoid beaches, refrain from sailing, stay clear of valleys and areas prone to flash floods”.
The UAE had already called for remote work and distance learning to be implemented on Thursday and Friday as the country prepared for heavy rain and thunder.
The National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority on Wednesday issued the guidance for all schools and universities and the public and private sector.
The Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation advised private sector companies to apply flexible and remote work patterns on Thursday.
Distance learning had already been announced for all private schools in Dubai and Sharjah on Thursday and Friday.
Officials announced that all government schools in the UAE would similarly introduce remote learning on both days.
However, key exams at some schools were still going ahead in-person, The National learnt.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Akeed
Based: Muscat
Launch year: 2018
Number of employees: 40
Sector: Online food delivery
Funding: Raised $3.2m since inception
Gulf Under 19s final
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
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Director: James Cameron
Starring: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana
Rating: 4.5/5
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Constant Variable (CVT)
Power: 141bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: Dh64,500
On sale: Now
Nepotism is the name of the game
Salman Khan’s father, Salim Khan, is one of Bollywood’s most legendary screenwriters. Through his partnership with co-writer Javed Akhtar, Salim is credited with having paved the path for the Indian film industry’s blockbuster format in the 1970s. Something his son now rules the roost of. More importantly, the Salim-Javed duo also created the persona of the “angry young man” for Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan in the 1970s, reflecting the angst of the average Indian. In choosing to be the ordinary man’s “hero” as opposed to a thespian in new Bollywood, Salman Khan remains tightly linked to his father’s oeuvre. Thanks dad.
The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
The specs
Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)
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Company%20profile
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How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
Name: Peter Dicce
Title: Assistant dean of students and director of athletics
Favourite sport: soccer
Favourite team: Bayern Munich
Favourite player: Franz Beckenbauer
Favourite activity in Abu Dhabi: scuba diving in the Northern Emirates
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Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
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RESULTS
Women:
55kg brown-black belt: Amal Amjahid (BEL) bt Amanda Monteiro (BRA) via choke
62kg brown-black belt: Bianca Basilio (BRA) bt Ffion Davies (GBR) via referee’s decision (0-0, 2-2 adv)
70kg brown-black belt: Ana Carolina Vieira (BRA) bt Jessica Swanson (USA), 9-0
90kg brown-black belt: Angelica Galvao (USA) bt Marta Szarecka (POL) 8-2
Men:
62kg black belt: Joao Miyao (BRA) bt Wan Ki-chae (KOR), 7-2
69kg black belt: Paulo Miyao (BRA) bt Gianni Grippo (USA), 2-2 (1-0 adv)
77kg black belt: Espen Mathiesen (NOR) bt Jake Mackenzie (CAN)
85kg black belt: Isaque Braz (BRA) bt Faisal Al Ketbi (UAE), 2-0
94kg black belt: Felipe Pena (BRA) bt Adam Wardzinski (POL), 4-0
110kg black belt final: Erberth Santos (BRA) bt Lucio Rodrigues (GBR) via rear naked choke
