In a rare phenomenon, residents of Dubai were pleasantly surprised as heavy snowfall blanketed a mountain region in neighbouring Ras Al Khaimah with many rushing there to witness the dazzling white snow.

Most newspapers carried out front-page photographs of snow fall on the mountains of Ras Al Khaimah on Friday night, leaving the Jebel Jais range covered in a thick white blanket of snow.

The government news agency Wam said about 20cm of snow covered the mountains.

"The sight up there this morning was totally unbelievable with the snow-capped mountain and the entire area covered with fresh, dazzling white snow," Major Saeed Rashid Al Yamahi, Manager of the Air Wing of RAK Police, who flew a helicopter to the top of the Jebel Jais mountain said.

"The snowfall started at 3 pm on Friday afternoon and heavy snowfall began at 8 pm and continued till midnight, covering the entire area in a thick blanket of snow," he said.

He told the media that the entire area was covered with 10cm of snow.
This spell of snowfall brought the temperature on top of the mountain cluster, situated at a height of 5,700feet, to as low as -3 degree celsius on Friday night, as the snow blanketed an area extending over 5kms.

Anecdotal evidence suggest this as the second instance of snowfall in the emirate after December 2004.

The temperature on top of the mountain cluster remained extremely cold during the daytime on Saturday with the temperature rising to just 1 degree celsius in the afternoon.