Dust Storm — West Central Deserts, Arizona

2016-07-29 · West Central Deserts, Arizona

Event narrative

Thunderstorms and associated strong gusty outflow winds pushed southwestward out of the mountains north of La Paz and Maricopa Counties and spread across the west central deserts during the late evening hours on July 29th. Peak wind gusts in excess of 50 mph were noted and the strong wind picked up large amounts of dust and dirt, creating dust storm conditions. Beginning at 2215MST multiple trained weather spotters in and around Salome reported visibility down to zero miles in a dust storm. At 2245MST another trained spotter 1 mile northwest of Bouse reported visibility down to one eighth of a mile in dense blowing dust. The dust storm conditions created very hazardous driving conditions for motorists in the area, including those on Interstate 10 and Highway 60 and 72. Fortunately there were no reports of serious accidents due to the dust storm. A Dust Storm Warning was issued at 2228MST and it remained in effect through midnight.

Wider weather episode

Thunderstorms moved south across the west central deserts during the late evening hours on July 29th; the stronger storms generated gusty outflow winds in excess of 60 mph at times. The gusty winds picked up large amounts of dust and dirt and created dust storm conditions that affected much of central La Paz county including communities such as Bouse and Salome. Multiple trained weather spotters reported visibilities from one quarter mile down to near zero in dense blowing dust. The sharply reduced visibility created very hazardous driving conditions along area roads including Interstate 10, Highway 60 and Highway 72 through Bouse. Fortunately there were no reports of serious accidents or injuries due to the dense blowing dust.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 646203. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.