Dust Storm — Okanogan Valley, Washington

2020-09-25 · Okanogan Valley, Washington

Event narrative

A trained spotter reported near zero visibility due to blowing dust from strong winds.

Wider weather episode

The passage of a frontal boundary brought strong winds in the afternoon of September 25th. The winds surged across eastern Washington bringing gusts to 40 mph in some areas of the Columbia Basin, Palouse, Okanogan Valley, and Waterville Plateau. These winds produced several dust storms with near zero visibility. The strong winds created blowing dust leading to multiple car accidents and a closed state highway.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 920818. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.