A towering wall of dust rolled through metro Phoenix on Monday in a blinding storm that left thousands without power in its wake.
AP reports the storm, colloquially known as a haboob, arrived late in the afternoon to envelop Arizona City, about 60 miles southeast of Phoenix.
The outlet noted a haboob is a dust storm pushed by the wind produced before a weather front or thunderstorm and typically occurs in flat, arid areas.
A giant dust storm approaches the Phoenix metro area as a monsoon storm pushes the dust into the air, Monday, Aug. 25, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
This photo provided by the City of Phoenix shows a towering cloud of dust at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport on Monday, Aug. 25, 2025. (City of Phoenix via AP)
Heavy rain and wind formed a part of Monday’s haboob, delaying flights at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport and causing some damage to a terminal roof.
“Crews have been identifying leaks and attempting to clean up water where it has collected in passenger areas,” Heather Shelbrack, the airport’s deputy aviation director for public relations, said in an email as reported by AP.
More than 15,000 people lost power, most in Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix, according to PowerOutage.us.
A giant dust storm approaches the Phoenix metro area as a monsoon storm pushes the dust into the air, Monday, Aug. 25, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
A giant dust storm approaches the Phoenix metro area as a monsoon storm pushes the dust into the air, Monday, Aug. 25, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
Phoenix has been drier than usual during the monsoon season, while parts of southeast and north-central Arizona have had a fair amount of rain, said Mark O’Malley, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Phoenix confirmed to AP.
“But that’s typical for a monsoon, very hit and miss,” he added.
The Associated Press contributed to this story
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