Dust Storm — Southeast Utah, Utah

2024-04-05 · Southeast Utah, Utah

Event narrative

Combinations of social media reports and web cam images from across the zone indicated dense areas of blowing dust, with visibility estimated to have been reduced to less than 1/2 mile. The worst of this was reported in and around the Monument Valley area of southeast Utah, where estimated winds of 45-55 mph lofted dust in from northern Arizona. Dust continued tracking north through the zone, but visibility improved above 1 mile based on various observation sources.

Wider weather episode

As southwesterly wind strengthened across the Four Corners Region ahead of a potent cold front and unseasonably strong Pacific trough, these winds picked up dust from the deserts of northern Arizona. This dust, along with dust pick up across the lower elevations of southeast Utah, were transported as far north as the I-70 corridor in far western Colorado and eastern Utah, including the Grand Valley and areas around Moab.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1178118. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.