It was an eerie day in Canberra yesterday as a brown haze blocked out the sun and shrouded our landmarks while a ferocious wind whipped through the city.
No, not a scene of Armageddon but something far more prosaic: dust, and lots of it, blown in from south-west NSW, as far away as Albury and Wagga Wagga.
Bureau of Meteorology spokesman Kenn Batt said a cold front had caused the dust to sweep in.
''Strong winds can happen ahead of cold fronts, and what happens is the wind whips up the red dust out to the west and blows it in over us,'' he said.
The drought meant there was plenty of top soil and dust to be kicked up.
''And that's where the strong surface winds come into play. They pick up the dust and the dust gets taken into the stable air and is actually suspended in the air and was then blown from west to east.''
The dust storm, which settled over the city about 1pm, should clear early this morning. ''There will be minor dust around but the worst is over,'' Mr Batt said, adding that the cold front had caused the phenomenon. ''Strong winds can happen ahead of cold fronts, and what happens is the wind whips up the red dust out to the west and blows it in over us.''
For more, pick up a copy of today's Canberra Times
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