Foggy conditions likely to continue

Dubai: Severe foggy conditions have been experienced in the UAE since early on Wednesday.

A second day of fog was reported after some of the most severe fog conditions of the season were experienced in some emirates early on Wednesday, with visibility dropping to 50 metres in Dubai.

Dubai, Sharjah, and Abu Dhabi experienced heavy fog early yesterday, with visibility in Abu Dhabi and Sharjah dropping to 100 metres.

"Conditions in Dubai were severe with almost no visibility on Wednesday," said Dr S. K. Gupta, duty forecaster at the Dubai Meteorological Office, yesterday.

The foggy conditions started in Sharjah at 3am, Dubai at 4am and Abu Dhabi at 5am and lasted between four to six hours. Conditions cleared in Dubai by 10am.

Al Ain and Ras Al Khaimah experienced a light mist.

Dr Gupta said it was impossible for planes to land under the visibility that Dubai experienced, but added that early warnings meant flights could be rescheduled ahead of time accordingly. The runway visual range (RVR) for aeroplanes, he said, was reported at 300 metres.

Foggy conditions will continue until tomorrow afternoon, when strong shamal winds will replace the fog and dip daytime temperatures to "cold and breezy", according to Dr Gupta.

By Saturday wind conditions are expected to report between strong shamal or near gale-force and a maximum temperature of 22C is expected.

"This is the first major shamal this winter. It's normal for this time of the year. It might not be comfortable for boat cruises or desert ventures as the wind could blow sand," said Dr Gupta.

The conditions are expected to last until Sunday and no rain is expected during this time, except for a slight chance of rain in the north of the country.

Dr Gupta said it was too early to issue warnings for fishermen for weather conditions over the week.