“Can planes swim?” – Planes become boats as Dubai Airport is savaged by severe storm
There were mad scenes in Dubai yesterday as the city’s airport was hit by “exceptional weather” conditions.
The country, known for its hot and dry conditions, experienced a year’s worth of rain on Tuesday. Multiple homes and businesses have been impacted by the flooding.
Video footage circulating on social media shows planes struggling to navigate the stormy conditions. Footage captured by Sky News shows a plane nearly completely submerged by water.
Given the popularity of Dubai International Airport – the hub was recently crowned the second busiest in the world – the storm has caused travel chaos.
“Due to adverse weather conditions, multiple flights to and from @DXB are experiencing delays or disruptions,” Dubai-based airline Emirates wrote on X.
“We are working hard to get all affected passengers to their final destination safely, and will provide updates as soon as possible,” it continued.
Meanwhile, DXB – the official account for the airport – warned travelers that they may struggle to get to the airport.
“Due to road blockages and flooding, we’re experiencing a high volume of guests unable to reach #DXB for their departing flights. We’re working continuously to restore normal operations, and have also arranged refreshments for guests currently at the airport, where possible.”
The airport closed operations briefly on Tuesday and has warned that disruptions continue.
“There is major flooding on access roads around Dubai leading to the airport.”
Many on social media could not believe what they were seeing. Footage circulated by TMZ on TikTok showed a plane battling to make it through the flooding.
“Can planes swim?’ one bemused social media user said, whilst another added “Omg is this real ? Looks like a horror movie.”
Morerain is expected on Wednesday.
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