Minnesotan in Dubai says she's safe, but options to leave are limited
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A Minnesota family living in Dubai said they’re staying safe amid ongoing missile attacks, as Iran retaliates against U.S. strikes.
“There have been days this week where I've had kind of a nervous feeling in the pit of my stomach, but mostly it's been actually OK,” Linda Hoiseth said.
Hoiseth is a librarian at an international school in Dubai. Her husband works there as a social studies teacher, and her son also teaches at a school in Abu Dhabi.
She said the first sign of the conflict came Saturday, as Iran began striking countries around the region, aiming primarily at U.S. military facilities and embassies. She first heard from her son, who was at the pool with his family and saw missiles flying overhead.
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“Then we started hearing the booms of missiles being intercepted,” Hoiseth said. “So it became pretty real, pretty fast.”
Her school, which is mostly made up of foreign kids, quickly moved to online classes, and then announced an early start to spring break. Three times this week, she’s gotten phone alerts telling her to seek shelter, as air strikes continue in the region.
“I am personally avoiding places that say ‘American’ in them,” she said.
For the most part, she said, she feels safe in her apartment and running errands. She said she’s seen military aircraft in the sky but hasn’t seen any shrapnel or been near a strike. So far, she said, the country’s missile defense technology seems to be working.
“Everyone keeps saying it feels kind of like COVID, because there's this danger that's out there that's hard to see,” Hoiseth said. “People are sticking close to home and making sure that you always know where your family members are.”
Hoiseth and her family plan to stay put for now — partly because she feels relatively safe, but also because it’s hard to find flights out. Many have been canceled; those still taking off are more expensive than usual. Hoiseth said she knows some foreigners who have driven to Oman or Saudi Arabia to catch flights home, since it’s easier to find flights leaving there.
The State Department has urged Americans to leave the United Arab Emirates and several other countries in the region. But when she’s called the State Department’s hotline for Americans to ask how to do that, she said she’s told to get on a commercial flight. She said that’s frustrating advice.
“I think that we wouldn't be in this situation if our federal government hadn't put us in this situation, and it's really frustrating that they're not helping us get out of it,” Hoiseth said.
For now, she said, she’s prioritizing teaching until spring break starts next week. She’s doing her best to be a calming presence for her students — and reminding them to verify any rumors they read on social media.
She’s hoping for an end to the missiles overhead so she and her students can get back to campus.
