Historic dust storm sweeps Arizona, turns day into night

(Reuters) - Phoenix brushed itself off and returned to normal on Wednesday after a "historic dust storm" swept over the area, sending residents scrambling for cover, halting drivers and delaying flights. Day turned into night as the billowy plumes of dust rolled over the mountains and clogged the skies over and around Phoenix in the late afternoon and into the evening on Tuesday, according to meteorologists. "A very large and historic dust storm moved through a large swatch of Arizona," the National Weather Service office in Phoenix said in a statement posted on its website, calling it an "impressive event." Residents rushed inside as sand from the storm blasted the area in winds of up to 50 miles per hour, NWS reported. Near zero visibility forced drivers to stop on area roads until the worst of the storm passed. Read More