THREE Filipino workers in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) died from the massive flooding that hit the country as well as Oman, the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) said yesterday.
DMW Undersecretary Hans Leo Cacdac said two of the overseas Filipino workers died from suffocation inside their vehicle during the flood while the third died in a vehicular accident.
“We shall provide utmost support and assistance to their families,” Cacdac said in a social media post on Thursday night.
Earlier in the day, the DMW said no Filipino casualty has been reported in the UAE.
As of Thursday, the UAE was still grappling with the aftermath of a record-breaking storm this week that brought much of the country to a standstill.
In Dubai, operations at the airport, a major travel hub, remain disrupted after Tuesday’s storm flooded the runway, resulting in flight diversions, delays and cancellations.
The airport said on Thursday morning it had resumed receiving inbound flights at Terminal 1, used by foreign carriers, but that flights continue to be delayed and disrupted.
The storm, which hit neighboring Oman on Sunday, pounded the UAE on Tuesday, flooding roads and causing hours-long gridlock as rainwater inundated homes. One person was reported dead in the UAE and 20 in Oman.
Flooding trapped residents in traffic, offices and homes as the UAE recorded its heaviest rains in the 75 years that records have been kept, authorities said.
Climate experts say rising temperatures caused by human-led climate change are leading to more extreme weather events around the world, such as the storm that struck the UAE and Oman. — With Reuters
