Sharjah: The heavy rains that pounded across the emirates on Wednesday morning wreaked chaos on Sharjah roads, causing major delays for motorists and pupils.
A number of arterial roads were water-logged due to the strong rains, mainly affecting traffic in the direction towards schools, such as the school zones in Al Muweilah, Al Taawun and along University Road.
As the rains continued to worsen, school buses were unable to reach schools on time and were stuck on the road for several hours. As a result of the major tailbacks across the city of Sharjah, school buses were requested to return the pupils home.
Victoria International School in Sharjah, located near the border of Dubai in Al Taawun, confirmed that the school was operational but urged pupils to stay home if they faced difficulties on their commute.
“The weather is expected to ease mid-morning we are managing the situation in the school on a needs basis,” said the school management.
Ikram Khan, manager of school operations at VISS, posted a video of the deserted school as pupils were unable to make their way to classes due to traffic and heavy downpour.
Although the Ministry of Education did not make any official announcement as to the closure of schools, many schools in Sharjah remained open but were lenient towards the attendance of pupils – advising them to stay home if faced with gridlocked traffic on their route to school.
Some schools in Dubai notified parents to collect their children earlier than usual, as school would close a few hours early on Wednesday due to water-logged roads causing tailbacks along popular routes.
To increase the level of safety on roads, Sharjah Police urged motorists to be cautious when driving in unstable weather conditions, and to follow traffic rules and regulation to avoid accidents.
An official at Sharjah Police took to social media to share tips on how to drive safe in the rain.
