Hail falls on eastern UAE as forecasters warn of tropical storm

The government weather centre is monitoring a growing storm in the Arabian Sea

A man wearing national dress holds a pile of hail stones on the Masafi to Dibba road, according to the Storm Centre Twitter account. Courtesy: Storm Centre

Hailstones fell on the east coast on Sunday as the country began another week of unsettled weather.

Residents in the rural Masafi and Dibba areas posed for photos with balls of ice in their hands — but Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah remained dry.

The downpour came as the UAE's weather centre warned a tropical cyclone is forming in the Arabian Sea.

The National Centre for Meteorology said its size and likelihood of affecting the country would become clearer in the coming days.

Earlier this month Dubai was hit with flash floods while some villages on the east coast experienced power cuts with homes left water-logged.

The centre is "closely monitoring the situation on the hour and providing updates accordingly".

Videos of hailstones were taken on the Dibba-Masafi road by residents.

Heavy rain with hail was also reported in Sih Al Bahah and Wadi Asimah in Ras Al Khaimah. The rain has caused the Wadi Al Abadilah in Fujairah to flood.

More rain may fall in the next five days, said the centre. Drivers should slow down where there is standing water and use their lights when visibility is poor.

In April, hundreds of people spent the night on the Jebel Jais mountainside when flooding caused roads to be cut off.

A police helicopter airlifted 170 people — about 20 at a time throughout the night — to safety.

Tropical storm watch