Giant dust storm moves through Phoenix area

[AsahinaKimi]

A dust storm rolls into the Phoenix area Monday evening, July 18, 2011. The dust wall was about 900 meters high and created winds of 40 to 48 kph, with gusts of up to 64 kph, said Austin Jamison, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. (AP Photo/The Arizona Republic, Nick Oza)

PHOENIX (AP) -- A giant wall of dust rolled through the Phoenix area on Monday, turning the sky brown, creating dangerous driving conditions and delaying some airline flights.

The dust storm, also known as a haboob in Arabic and around Arizona, formed in Pinal County and headed northeast, reaching Phoenix at about 5:30 p.m.

The dust wall was about 3,000 feet (900 meters) high and created winds of 25 to 30 mph (40 to 48 kph), with gusts of up to 40 mph (64 kph), said Austin Jamison, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. Visibility was down to less than a quarter-mile (400 meters) in some areas, he said.

"You have suddenly very poor visibilities that come on with all the dense dust in the air," he said. "With poor visibilities, that makes for dangerous driving conditions and that's arguably the biggest impact."

more..
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/odd/news/20110720p2g00m0dm054000c.html
**Pictures of this were posted yesterday. Found a story on it.

[Webster Green]

1. Wow!

That is an amazing picture.

[rurallib]

2. This is a second dust storm? Wasn't there one a couple weeks ago?

this was supposed to be a hundred year event.

[SpiralHawk]

5. Yup - this is global climate change the republicons caused and that they now...

..refuse to acknowledge as reality.

Republicon lies - standard operating procedure...

Ptooey on the earth-destroying, lying RepubliCorp Borg Against America and their own children and grand children.

[Xithras]

7. They were talking about the size.

Haboobs happen several times a year in the southwestern deserts, and are not uncommon during the monsoon season. The haboob a few weeks ago was just an unusually massive one.

http://phoenix.about.com/od/arizonamonsoon/qt/haboob.htm

[rurallib]

8. I am kind of ignorant on things haboob

{sorry, couldn't help myself}

[Cirque du So-What]

3. '...dangerous driving conditions... arguably the biggest impact'

I would argue that the effect on the respiratory system is the biggest impact. I expect many people's respiratory conditions are worsened by these dust storms.

[AsahinaKimi]

4. That and this...

The dust also brings increases in a disease known as Valley Fever, a fungal pneumonia. Valley Fever thrives in the hot and arid Southwest in dirt found just a few feet beneath the earth's surface; it can be stirred up by construction, wind and other activity.

[Cirque du So-What]

6. From my time living in southern California, I'm familiar with increased cases of valley fever

following Santa Ana winds, which blow the spores from the interior desert to populated areas. Incidentally, did you know the US government attempted to 'weaponize' valley fever spores back in the mid-'60s? Guess it wasn't deadly enough to suit them.
:mad:

[onethatcares]

9. if you read about the dustbowl of the 30s you'll find out the

dust was finer than powder, like talcum powder and it got into everything no matter how tight you thought you had things. With todays motors and air filters can you imagine the damage done to cars and trucks? Airconditioner systgems? Water Filtration? the whole shebang.

On top of that, the auto insurance industry just got another reason to screw us all due to a drop in profit because of dust storms.