Gigantic 'haboob' dust storm engulfs Phoenix, Arizona

A towering wall of dust has rolled through Phoenix, Arizona with storms that left tens of thousands of people without power and temporarily grounded flights at the city's airport.

About 39,000 people were without power in Arizona, most of whom were in Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix, according to PowerOutage.us.

Motorists hurried home through strong winds and rain as the dust storm, commonly known as a haboob, approached on Monday.

Haboobs are associated with collapsing thunderstorms and strong winds and can make driving on roads nearly impossible.

The haboob cut visibility to 500m across metropolitan Phoenix but had cleared up by Monday evening. Phoenix has been drier than usual during the summer rainy season, while parts of southeast and north-central Arizona have had a fair amount of rain.

The Arizona Department of Transportation wrote on X that people should not drive into a dust storm, "But if you're on the road when one hits, PULL ASIDE, STAY ALIVE!"

Planes at the Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport were temporarily grounded due to extreme weather. By Monday evening, the ground stop had been lifted, with flights delayed about 15 to 30 minutes.

Traffic lights were also out in neighbouring Gilbert, and the storm toppled trees across town, according to the city's police department.