Ras Al Khaimah: An Emirati died and four others sustained serious injuries when their vehicles were submerged after heavy rains flooded a wadi in Ras Al Khaimah on Saturday.
Saeed Mohammad Ali Habas, 35, drowned after his vehicle went astray in Wadi Ghaleelah.
The victim, his relatives and friends said, had been on his way to his farm in the area, but lost control of his white pick-up.
A number of people tried to save him with a rope but failed.
The accident was reported to the police who dispatched a helicopter, but Habas was pronounced dead at the scene.
The victim's body was sent to Saqr Hospital and will be handed over to his family for burial soon.
In other incidents, two other vehicles carrying four Emiratis were also submerged in the wadi. They were saved by residents and later taken to hospital for treatment.
Normal practice
Heading to wadis to watch rainfall is considered a normal practice in the emirate.
A senior police officer said stations all over Ras Al Khaimah had repeatedly warned about the danger of wadis during rainfall.
Major Saeed Al Yamahi, who heads the Air Wing at RAK Police, said the department's helicopter had been patrolling the emirate to provide help.
He added that the helicopter had been instructed to work around the clock to help residents, and that it had rescued many people whose vehicles had become stuck in wadis.
Residents of the remote area of Shaam and Ghaleelah said rainfall in Wadi Ghaleelah posed a severe danger.
They said many of their homes and shops, especially those close to the main street, had been flooded.
Residents had been working together to clear the water and had called for help from the authorities.
The Municipality announced that water pumping vehicles would be assigned to help residents.
Stormy weather: Heavy Rain at RAK airport
Heavy rain fell on Ras Al Khaimah on Saturday with the Metrological Department at the RAK International Airport claiming that as of 4am, 4mm of rain had fallen on the facility.
Moderate to heavy rains lashed various parts of the country on Saturday with cloud cover remaining most of the day.
Light to moderate rains were recorded in Al Ain, while there was moderate rain associated with lightning and thunder storms in Umm Al Quwain.
Temperatures dropped across the country.
— With inputs from WAM
