SPOKANE, Wash. – A powerful dust storm hit Spokane today, causing significant disruptions across the city.
Brittany Langhorne, a local resident, was about to take her daughter to soccer practice when the storm intensified.
“My phone was going off for severe thunderstorm alerts,” said Langhorne.
Langhorne’s daughter’s practice was abruptly canceled due to the storm.
“Yeah, she got down here and she’s like ‘Mom they canceled practice!'” Langhorne added.
The cancellation wasn’t an isolated incident. People attending a game at Union Stadium had to shelter in place in the locker rooms due to the severe weather. Additionally, downed power lines caused fires in some areas.
“Like it was just crazy like it was suddenly just a big cloud of black smoke that had hit us,” stated Carolyn Lamb, another Spokane resident.
Lamb was at home with her family watching the dust storm when a power line near their apartment blew over and sparked a fire.
Lamb expressed relief that the fire was quickly extinguished despite the dry brush in their area.
“We know it takes two seconds, it takes two seconds for this all to go down,” emphasized Lamb.
The storm left a trail of brush fires, homes without power, and people caught outside in harsh conditions.
“And it was pretty bad. It was hard to really be outside,” added Langhorne.
