Phoenix battered by dust storm

A massive dust storm descended on the Phoenix area in Arizona, drastically reducing visibility and delaying flights as strong winds uprooted trees and left thousands of residents without power.

The dust cloud that moved across the Phoenix valley on Tuesday had formed in an afternoon storm in the Tucson area, and rolled north across the desert before sweeping over the city. Radar data showed the storm's towering dust wall reaching as high as 10,000ft.

By the time the dust cloud neared the metropolitan area, it had started to fade but it still towered over the city with a wall of at least 5,000ft.