Deluge in the desert | Watch dramatic visuals of Dubai flash floods

Heavy rains lashed the United Arab Emirates, flooding out portions of major highways and leaving vehicles abandoned on roads across Dubai.

Amidst the chaos across the nation, an unusual picture of Dubai has emerged.

Pictures and videos on the internet showed a waterlogged metro station, with passengers navigating ankle-deep water.

A birds-eye view of a road showed cars, abandoned by their owners, piled up and almost submerged under water.

Dubai, the world's busiest air hub for international passengers, had to divert several inbound flights. Delays and cancellations marred operations at the Dubai International Airport. Access roads leading to the airport were also inundated. Planes were seen taxiing on flooded runways and cars half-submergaaed at the airport's parking lot.

Several other city landmarks - including flagship shopping centres like Dubai Mall and Mall of the Emirates - were flooded as well. Residential communities faced hardships, struggling with leakages from roofs, doors, and windows.

Police and emergency personnel drove slowly through the flooded streets, their emergency lights flashing across the darkened morning. Lightning flashed across the sky, occasionally touching the tip of the Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest building.

Schools across the UAE, a federation of seven sheikhdoms, were largely shut ahead of the storm, and government employees were working remotely where possible. Many workers stayed home as well, though some ventured out, with the unfortunate grappling with vehicles stalled in deeper-than-expected water.

(With PTI inputs)