You haven't lived in Arizona long if you've never seen a swirling cloud of wind moving over the open desert on a warm, calm, and sunny afternoon. These whirlwinds are known as dust devils.
Dust devils typically last less than a minute and don't cause much concern but some dust devils can be more ferocious than you think.
On May 13, 2011 witnesses say a huge dust devil passed over a home in the Desert Hills area in North Phoenix around 2 p.m. It tore a number of shingles off the roof and even flipped a children's swing set into a nearby barn. The homeowner reported that the dust devil sounded like a freight train crashing through the house.
This was probably a frightening situation but it's definitely not common to see dust devils this large in Arizona.
Dust devils can be as small as a few feet wide and 10 feet tall and as large as 300 feet wide and 3,280 feet tall. Winds inside a dust devil are about 45 mph but can reach speeds over 60 mph.
In rare cases, like in Flagstaff, Ariz. on Sept. 14, 2000 a dust devil had estimated winds as high as 75 mph. This dust devil hit the Coconino Country Fairgrounds causing major damage to booths, tables, and some structures. Several people were injured.
Dust devils form on sunny days when the sun heats the desert floor, causing a column of air to rise rapidly. As the column of air rises, it begins to rotate on a vertical axis. This vortex becomes clearly visible when dirt from the desert floor is pulled into the spinning column.
