This article is more than 9 years old

This article is more than 9 years old

A vast dust storm, up to 50 miles wide and gusting as fast as 60mph, swept across the US city of Phoenix on Tuesday night, choking the streets, toppling trees and briefly closing the local airport.

The storm began near Tucson, the local Arizona Republic newspaper reported, before rolling more than 100 miles north-west towards the state capital. A time-lapse video by the paper showed the storm completely enveloping downtown Phoenix at about 7.30pm local time (3.30am BST).

The city's airport closed for an hour, with the Federal Aviation Administration warning about continued flight delays.

The storm caused some power blackouts, leaving up to 8,000 people without electricity and police directing traffic. In one area live power cables brought down by the dust and winds briefly caused a fire. Elsewhere, streets were blocked by toppled trees.

While dust storms remain more common in the Middle East and, increasingly, northern China, they have occasionally plagued more arid parts of the US, most famously during the 'Dust Bowl' era of the 1930s.