Thunderstorm batters Abu Dhabi, flights suspended for a short period

Abu Dhabi, Mar 10: A massive storm whipped through the city of Abu Dhabi on Wednesday causing severe damage. The heavy downpur left many commuters stranded on city streets.

All flights were suspended at the Abu Dhabi International Aipport following the storm that was accompanied by strong winds. Several schools were also closed on Wednesday and may remain so on Thursday.

Residents were urged to stay at home and were asked not travel in the severe weather conditions.

However, rescue teams immediately sprung into action and began pumping out the stagnated water off the roads. Several areas were inundated while reports claimed that buildings collapsed in some areas of Abu Dhabi.

Resident were left shocked after the storm as it is unusual for the desert city to experience such heavy rainfall. Officials say that the extreme weather may continue till Thursday, Mar 10 evening.

Here are some tweets that show a glimpse of the extreme weather:

UPDATE Heavy rain and strong wind at #AbuDhabi International Airport. Live: https://t.co/RWt9fuSc5m pic.twitter.com/5sJeqDtvyA

— AIRLIVE (@airlivenet) March 9, 2016

Gulf News reader Emma O'Reilly sends a video of #rain wreaking havoc in #AbuDhabi. pic.twitter.com/IH4UDuiXgC

— Gulf News (@gulf_news) March 9, 2016

Rainstorm videos in #AbuDhabi and #Dubai flood social media https://t.co/GKU4NbHfpB #UAEWeather #UAErain pic.twitter.com/wZ531tROvm

— Al Arabiya English (@AlArabiya_Eng) March 9, 2016

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