Scary haboob plunges parts of US into darkness, grounds flights. What are these giant dust storms?

Parts of central Arizona in the US were covered by a massive wall of dust on Monday evening, creating striking scenes that stunned many.

Dust storms like these happen when strong winds from thunderstorms pick up dust and debris into the air, according to the US National Weather Service.

These dust walls, called haboobs, can stretch for many miles, rise thousands of feet high and appear suddenly, leading to a sharp drop in visibility.

Thunderstorms trigger this event and can push a dust wall several miles wide and thousands of feet tall, moving at speeds of 60 mph (97 kph) or more.

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The sight can be both breathtaking and frightening, particularly for drivers caught in the middle of it.

The storm lowered visibility to a quarter-mile in parts of the city. The state’s Department of Transportation advised people to stay off the roads, while flights at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport were briefly halted.

More than 40,000 customers lost power late on Monday in Maricopa County, where Phoenix is located, The New York Times reported.

Although pictures of a haboob may appear alarming, dozens of such storms take place every year in the southwest of the US, according to the country’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

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So how do haboobs form? And how can people stay safe when faced with these towering walls of dust and debris?

Let’s take a look:

How do haboobs form?

Thunderstorms can produce strong downdrafts that hit the ground at 50-80 mph (80-129 kph) and then spread in all directions, said Sean Benedict, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service’s Phoenix office.

The winds stir up loose dust and dirt, including from arid areas and farm fields, that get blown along in front of the approaching storm cell.

If thunderstorms don’t keep developing, the dust dissipates. But rain-cooled air in front of a storm can keep pushing warm air upward, generating new storms and more downdrafts, Benedict said.

When that happens, the haboob can keep growing, and some travel as far as 100 miles (161 kilometres), Benedict said.

“It’s all dependent on whether they’re moving through an area that’s prone to (generating) dust,” said Benedict, noting that there’s a prominent dust corridor between Phoenix and Tucson.

Haboobs can also form in arid areas of Nevada, New Mexico and Texas.

Will there be more haboobs?

Scientists say localised bursts of rain in the U.S. Southwest during the monsoon season in summer have become more intense since the 1970s as the atmosphere heats up due to human-caused climate change.

At the same time, it’s raining less often as droughts last longer and some arid areas expand. Climate change increases the odds of both severe drought and heavier storms that could set the stage for more intense dust storms in the future.

Benedict said it’s difficult to say whether haboobs will become more frequent.

The storms require a specific set of circumstances, and land use, such as farming, can affect how much dust gets picked up, Benedict said.

Not all dust storms are haboobs, which are specifically associated with downdrafts from thunderstorms.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says the Phoenix area experiences one to three large dust storms a year.

How can you stay safe?

The National Weather Service issues dust warnings if it anticipates that thunderstorms and high winds moving through dust-prone areas could reduce visibility to a quarter mile or less. That’s especially important when conditions are favourable for clusters of storms, Benedict said.

A massive dust storm loomed over Arizona, forcing flights to be grounded at the Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix pic.twitter.com/V4aszqqNCs

— Reuters (@Reuters) August 26, 2025

Haboobs can form quickly, catching drivers by surprise, blotting out the sun and reducing visibility to zero. Experts recommend that motorists pull off the roadways as far as possible, stop their vehicles and turn off their lights.

“People on the roads when they can’t see anything, they’re just gonna try to follow those taillights in front of them,” and run into parked cars, Benedict said. “If there is an accident, you might not know and you just get these big pile ups. So it’s definitely very dangerous when the visibility drops down that low.”

With inputs from AP