Videos: Showers bring relief to Sharjah and Fujairah

Sharjah: Residents in Sharjah and Fujairah welcomed brief showers on Saturday as the summer heat gave way to bursts of rain across central and eastern regions.

Rain was reported in Thoban (Fujairah), Al Dhaid and Al Madam (Sharjah), stretching to Masafi and Marbad in the east. Drivers and families embraced the cooler weather despite lingering humidity.

The National Centre of Meteorology said the rainfall, varying from light to heavy, was triggered by a surface low-pressure system moving in from the east, combined with weak upper-air disturbances. At times, strong winds of up to 40 kilometres per hour kicked up dust and sand, reducing visibility in some eastern areas.

More showers are expected on Sunday and Monday, especially in the eastern and southern regions. Coastal and inland areas could also see overnight humidity and early morning fog.

Meanwhile, Suwaihan in Al Ain recorded the country’s highest temperature of the day at 47.9°C in mid-afternoon, a reminder that summer’s intensity is far from over even as rain clouds gathered.

The rainfall coincided with the reappearance of the Suhail star, or Canopus, in the southern sky last week — a celestial sign long regarded in Arabian tradition as marking the slow retreat of summer and the arrival of cooler nights.