Massive Dust Storm Sweeps Across Metro Phoenix, Knocking Out Power for Thousands

A mighty storm generated a massive dust wall that swept across metro Phoenix on Monday, dimming the skies, obstructing drivers’ views, cutting off power, and halting flights at one of the nation’s busiest airports.

Bernae Boykin Hitesman was taking her 9- and 11-year-old children home from school when the storm, known as a haboob, struck in Arizona City, around 60 miles (95 kilometers) southeast of Phoenix, later in the day.

She had to quickly pull over as the storm engulfed her car. “I couldn’t see my hand in front of my face if I put my hand outside,” she said.

Boykin Hitesman said she could taste the dust and feel the strong wind rattling her car until it finally passed about 15 minutes later.

“I was nervous,” she said. “My kids were really, really scared, so I was trying to be brave for them.”

A haboob is a dust storm propelled by winds from a weather front or thunderstorm, typically occurring in flat, dry regions. Monday’s haboob was followed by intense rain and wind, causing flight delays at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport and inflicting some damage on a terminal roof.

“Crews have been identifying leaks and attempting to clean up water where it has collected in passenger areas,” Heather Shelbrack, the airport’s deputy aviation director for public relations, mentioned in an email.

More than 15,000 people lost power, most in Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix, according to PowerOutage.us.

Richard Filley, a retired university professor residing in Gilbert, shared that the dust storm made trees sway and knocked bird feeders to the ground. Fine dust infiltrated “every little crack and space” inside his house, he remarked.

“The windstorm part of it, I’m glad it’s gone,” he stated. “You look at the photos of haboobs and they are a spectacular natural phenomenon. They are kind of beautiful in their own way.”

Phoenix has been drier than usual during the monsoon season, while parts of southeast and north-central Arizona have had a fair amount of rain, said Mark O’Malley, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Phoenix.

“But that’s typical for a monsoon, very hit and miss,” he said.

The forecast for metro Phoenix calls for a 40% chance of rain Tuesday before drying out, O’Malley said.