Wet and windy weather ahead, says bureau

Heavy rain is expected across the country over the next few days, capping off a wave of gloomy weather, sandstorms and heavy winds.

Rain is expected to start over the eastern and northern parts of the UAE and gradually spread across the country as the weekend draws to a close, a meteorologist said.

"We are expecting a good yield of rain starting from [last night] and over the next two days," said the forecaster at the National Centre of Meteorology and Seismology in Abu Dhabi.

The rain expected today and tomorrow will be moderate to heavy, he said.

Temperatures will drop slightly while fresh winds will lift sand at times.

"This fluctuation is normal for April as this is the transition season between winter and summer," the forecaster said.

Meteorologists at the centre have said the amount of rain recorded throughout winter and early spring has been less than the average. This year has also been slightly colder than usual.

On January 22, there was a small amount of snow over Jebel Jais in Ras Al Khaimah and several instances of frost.

Today and tomorrow, wind speeds will range between 20kph and 36kph, reaching up to 55kph over the sea and open land, especially in the mornings and evenings.

Drivers have been asked to be careful on the roads after heavy wind and sandstorms caused havoc on the roads on Thursday.

The most serious incident was a 23-vehicle pile-up on the Dubai Bypass Road, in which nine people were injured.

Police said speeding was the cause of the accident and reminded drivers to slow down if visibility was poor.

In Abu Dhabi, eight crashes were reported on Thursday.

The bad weather did not affect the Eagles concert at Dubai's Sevens Stadium on Thursday. Yesterday's triathlon around the Formula One circuit on Yas Island also went ahead as scheduled.

vtodorova@thenational.ae