Emergency rescue teams on the east coast were put on standby last night as residents prepared for Cyclone Phet to make landfall.
The category four cyclone is expected to hit the UAE today, bringing with it strong winds and rain.
A 57-man quick response crew has been put on alert and "rapid intervention" teams were deployed to the northern emirate, the area likely to be hit hardest by the storm.
A command centre has been established to co-ordinate efforts to deal with the high winds and wet weather, the national news agency, WAM, reported last night.
Lt Gen Sheikh Saif bin Zayed, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, gave the orders to station the team in Fujairah after the National Centre for Meteorology and Seismology (NCMS) forecast that the cyclone might affect the coastline.
Col Mohammed Abdullah Nasib al Nuaimi, the acting director of emergency and public safety at Abu Dhabi Police, said the joint operations room would co-ordinate with Fujairah Police and other national authorities.
He added that the reports from NCMS said that the rescue team was only a precautionary measure to protect the safety of citizens and residents.
The Tropical Storm Risk organisation in Britain had Oman on red alert yesterday.
The NCMS website urged people to take precautions and "be alert", warning of dangerous conditions ahead.
It told people to be aware of the risks of outdoor activities.
The Emirates Meteorology blog said the storm, which developed in the Arabian Sea yesterday, was expected to make landfall today, and it would likely bring heavy rains, possibly with effects felt as far away as Al Ain.
Although intense cyclones are rare in the Arabian Sea, Phet is the second-strongest recorded, behind the category five Cyclone Gonu of 2007 which caused devastation in Oman, killing at least 32 people.
That cyclone brought huge waves to the UAE, triggering road closures and traffic diversions across Fujairah.
The road connecting Kalba and Fujairah was closed after it was submerged by floodwater.
At the time, it was reported that waves reached 10 metres and damaged several fishing boats.
Many boats were relocated, but damage to the port area was said to be severe. One boat with 10 passengers sank due to the high seas.
In March, the UAE was battered by severe storms with the heaviest rainfall measured in Fujairah and Ras al Khaimah.
More than 61mm of rain fell on Masafi, between the two emirates. In Abu Dhabi, 43.4mm of rain fell, with 22mm recorded in Dubai and 20mm in Sharjah.
However, the meteorologists' predicitions did not disappoint everyone.
Surfers were delighted at news of the large swells the storm would produce and headed east, preparing to follow the storm front along the coastline.
@Email:mswan@thenational.ae
German intelligence warnings
- 2002: "Hezbollah supporters feared becoming a target of security services because of the effects of [9/11] ... discussions on Hezbollah policy moved from mosques into smaller circles in private homes." Supporters in Germany: 800
- 2013: "Financial and logistical support from Germany for Hezbollah in Lebanon supports the armed struggle against Israel ... Hezbollah supporters in Germany hold back from actions that would gain publicity." Supporters in Germany: 950
- 2023: "It must be reckoned with that Hezbollah will continue to plan terrorist actions outside the Middle East against Israel or Israeli interests." Supporters in Germany: 1,250
Source: Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution
Race results:
1. Thani Al Qemzi (UAE) Team Abu Dhabi: 46.44 min
2. Peter Morin (FRA) CTIC F1 Shenzhen China Team: 0.91sec
3. Sami Selio (FIN) Mad-Croc Baba Racing Team: 31.43sec
About Proto21
Date started: May 2018
Founder: Pir Arkam
Based: Dubai
Sector: Additive manufacturing (aka, 3D printing)
Staff: 18
Funding: Invested, supported and partnered by Joseph Group
Singham Again
Director: Rohit Shetty
Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone
Rating: 3/5
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Storage: 128/256/512GB
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
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Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID
Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight
In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
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AndhaDhun
Director: Sriram Raghavan
Producer: Matchbox Pictures, Viacom18
Cast: Ayushmann Khurrana, Tabu, Radhika Apte, Anil Dhawan
Rating: 3.5/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
THE LIGHT
Director: Tom Tykwer
Starring: Tala Al Deen, Nicolette Krebitz, Lars Eidinger
Rating: 3/5
Match info
Premier League
Manchester United 2 (Martial 30', Lingard 69')
Arsenal 2 (Mustafi 26', Rojo 68' OG)
Results
United States beat UAE by three wickets
United States beat Scotland by 35 runs
UAE v Scotland – no result
United States beat UAE by 98 runs
Scotland beat United States by four wickets
Fixtures
Sunday, 10am, ICC Academy, Dubai - UAE v Scotland
Admission is free
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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'The Coddling of the American Mind: How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas are Setting up a Generation for Failure'
Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt, Penguin Randomhouse
Results
6.30pm Madjani Stakes Rated Conditions (PA) I Dh160,000 I 1,900m I Winner: Mawahib, Tadhg O’Shea (jockey), Eric Lemartinel (trainer)
7.05pm Maiden Dh150,000 I 1,400m I Winner One Season, Antonio Fresu, Satish Seemar
7.40pm: Maiden Dh150,000 I 2,000m I Winner Street Of Dreams, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson
8.15pm Dubai Creek Listed I Dh250,000 I 1,600m I Winner Heavy Metal, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer
8.50pm The Entisar Listed I Dh250,000 I 2,000m I Winner Etijaah, Dane O’Neill, Doug Watson
9.25pm The Garhoud Listed I Dh250,000 I 1,200m I Winner Muarrab, Dane O’Neill, Ali Rashid Al Raihe
10pm Handicap I Dh160,000 I 1,600m I Winner Sea Skimmer, Patrick Cosgrave, Helal Al Alawi
