Erdogan extends condolences to his UAE counterpart after flood disaster

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has extended his condolences to the United Arab Emirates President Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan regarding the flood disaster in the country.

President Erdogan offered his condolences to Al Nahyan over the phone on Wednesday, as the United Arab Emirates experienced its heaviest downpour in the last 75 years, according to the state weather service.

"The UAE witnessed its heaviest rainfall on record in the past 24 hours. Surpassing anything documented since the start of data collection in 1949," said the National Centre of Meteorology in a statement quoted by state news agency WAM.

The rainfall that fell on the country during the past 24 hours "is an exceptional event in the UAE's climate history since the start of recording climate data," the centre added.

Looking ahead, it said to expect "that the coming hours will witness the recording of larger amounts of rainfall."

Flights cancelled

The UAE's Emirates School Education Foundation also announced a two-day extension of online classes to all government schools across the country.

The move was taken to guarantee that safety and security standards in all government schools are met after the heavy rainfall and before resuming regular classes.

Fly Dubai Airlines has cancelled some flights due to bad weather conditions, while many others have been postponed.

The UAE Football Federation also announced the postponement of all local football matches scheduled for today, with new dates to be determined later.

The UAE's National Committee for Emergency Management urged residents to stay at home and follow safety guidelines, and only to leave home in cases of extreme necessity.

18 people dead

In neighbouring Oman, the state rescue agency said that heavy rains and flash floods had caused the death of 18 people, including nine schoolchildren.

Omani authorities are engaged in rescue efforts, with schools closed in six governorates, including Muscat, due to dangerous weather conditions.

Moderate to heavy rainfall is forecast for northeastern and northern Oman in the coming days.