AFP, Doha :
Of all the problems faced by Qatar’s World Cup, rainfall was probably the very last issue tournament organisers in the desert state expected to deal with.
But severe flooding caused by a year’s worth of rain has again raised questions over the ability of Qatar’s infrastructure – much of it being put in place for 2022 – to cope with such conditions.
Extreme weather conditions on October 20 made roads impassable, flooded tunnels, universities, schools, clinics, embassies, the new national library and closed shops, some for several days, as 84 millimetres of rain fell.
Average rainfall for Qatar is 77mm. For the month of October, the average is just 1.1mm.
In Education City, a Doha suburb where a 2022 World Cup stadium will be located, official figures showed an astonishing 98mm rain fell.
The ministry of municipality and environment’s “rainfall emergency committee” said 287 million gallons of rainwater were subsequently removed.
Social media showed rainwater running down staircases inside buildings, parked cars all but submerged and people using jet skis on main roads usually used by cars.
One widely-shared image showed a central Doha football ground, not a World Cup venue, resembling a lake.
A contrite public works authority, Ashghal, tweeted its apologies saying it was “sorry for the effects caused by the recent heavy rainfall”.
The extreme conditions were exacerbated by Qatar’s terrain, causing drainage problems.
Of all the problems faced by Qatar’s World Cup, rainfall was probably the very last issue tournament organisers in the desert state expected to deal with.
But severe flooding caused by a year’s worth of rain has again raised questions over the ability of Qatar’s infrastructure – much of it being put in place for 2022 – to cope with such conditions.
Extreme weather conditions on October 20 made roads impassable, flooded tunnels, universities, schools, clinics, embassies, the new national library and closed shops, some for several days, as 84 millimetres of rain fell.
Average rainfall for Qatar is 77mm. For the month of October, the average is just 1.1mm.
In Education City, a Doha suburb where a 2022 World Cup stadium will be located, official figures showed an astonishing 98mm rain fell.
The ministry of municipality and environment’s “rainfall emergency committee” said 287 million gallons of rainwater were subsequently removed.
Social media showed rainwater running down staircases inside buildings, parked cars all but submerged and people using jet skis on main roads usually used by cars.
One widely-shared image showed a central Doha football ground, not a World Cup venue, resembling a lake.
A contrite public works authority, Ashghal, tweeted its apologies saying it was “sorry for the effects caused by the recent heavy rainfall”.
The extreme conditions were exacerbated by Qatar’s terrain, causing drainage problems.
