The giant dust storm that descended on Phoenix on Monday also swallowed Chase Field, where the Arizona Diamondbacks and San Diego Padres were in the midst of a baseball game.
Luckily, the MLB stadium's retractable roof shielded fans and players from the massive dust cloud, called a haboob.
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Haboobs only happen in Arizona, the Sahara desert, and parts of the Middle East because of
dry conditions and large amounts of sand, according to USA Today. They occur when thunderstorms create downdrafts, often called downbursts, which send loose dust from the ground into the air. The sediment is buoyed upward as a wall that moves in front of the storm.
Phoenix meteorologists reported up to 50 mph winds and a
dust wall estimated to be around 2,000 feet high, according to The Weather Channel. The haboob reportedly knocked out power for more than 10,000 people.
Users took to Twitter to post photographs of the dust storm.
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