Dubai, as we know it, didn’t simply pop out of the desert sand dunes one morning like a tiger beetle. Believe it or not, the roots of this modern metropolis run deeper than its drainage system. Once a simple fishing village and trading port with transport infrastructure as sophisticated as camels maintained on just grass and water, the now flashy and glitzy global business hub is the product of vision, a well-oiled plan, and good management.
Famed for its towering skyscrapers that would’ve made the proprietors of the Tower of Babel ask for a refund, the nature-defying artificial islands that effortlessly float on water like cheese, and massive malls that could make any shopping addict get emotional from sheer excitement; Dubai was a place where dreams were made of steel, glass, and a splash of oil money, until the heavens opened and reminded us who the real boss is!
Instead of the usual scorching days that are hot enough to fry an egg on the pavement, this time it rained cats and dogs plus a couple of camels, which resulted in an inundation of water that could’ve given Noah’s flood a run for its money. 2024 has taught us that whereas Dubai’s oil is presided over with the precision of a Swiss chronograph, they’re not particularly good at managing large volumes of less-viscous fluids like water. In a flash, the city can go from an oasis to a modern-day Atlantis!
The torrential downpour of April was nothing short of a spectacle. The city, once accustomed to hosting the world’s tallest building and known for being the attraction of car enthusiasts with a penchant for luxury and high-end automobiles, Dubai now found itself hosting the world’s largest city-wide water park. Except in the place of slides and swimming pools, you had streets and sidewalks that made for a soggy adventure! Who needs a water park when you have a poorly-drained city!?
The roads on which the most luxurious cars imaginable once cruised had now turned into rivers. With the occasional drowned Range Rover, Lambo and Ferrari floating by, even the camels that swam alongside wondered what in the desert was going on! The inhabitants of Dubai weren’t close to prepared for the sudden deluge. And so, as the water levels rose, so did the panic. People scampered to find the highest point in their homes, which, in most cases, would be somewhere at the top shelf in their walk-in closets. Some even resorted to climbing the Burj Khalifa, only to realize that the view from the top isn’t exactly breathtaking when everything below is under three feet of water.
Amidst the mayhem, yes, the dark seeded cloud had a silver lining! For example, in addition to swimming becoming a must-have skill, the merchants of inflatable pool toys made a killing from sales! Also, the Dubai Aquarium whose aquatic animals had spent their lives quite literally swimming in circles now found themselves swimming in the streets.
More than just a test of the city’s resilience, the great flood was a test of the sturdiness of Dubai’s infrastructure. As the floodwaters rose, so did the questions about the city’s preparedness for similar natural phenomena. In the early 2000s, Dubai spent what’s equivalent to the GDP of a small country on building the artificial Palm Islands in the sea, but when it came to dealing with water on land, it’s like they totally forgot to budget for umbrellas, boats and submarines. The irony is so thick, you could build another Palm Jumeirah with it!
The city had spent billions on maintaining a flawless façade but practically neglected to invest in flood defenses. Talk about putting the cart before the horse, or, for that matter, the artificial island before the drain!
Eventually, the deluge subsided as quickly as it came. The city was left to pick up the pieces, ponder its future and possibly draw some lines in the sand. Perhaps the most important lessons being that: the forces of nature don’t care how much money you have, and, also, no amount of money can buy common sense. As the sun once again began to shine on Dubai, the residents of the desert city returned to their lives with an indelible reminder that water is life only when managed properly!
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