An ancient northwestern city in China was swallowed up in a big wall of sand numerous feet high in a scene that looks directly from a catastrophe movie.
Dramatic video recorded by a citizen reveals the city of Dunhuang, on the fringes of the Gobi desert, swallowed by a sandstorm on Sunday afternoon.
The popular traveler area for a short time vanished under the 300feet high yellow dust clouds that blew in from the desert, turning the city red then black.
Police needed to shut significant roadways in the city, which has a long history as an ancient Silk Road station, and prompted vehicle drivers to wait in service locations for the storm to pass.
A resident surnamed Zhang informed regional media, Jimu News, that the storm came suddenly and swept through the city in 5 or 6 minutes.
‘I couldn’t see the sun,’ he included.
‘At first I was enveloped in the sandstorm’s yellow dust, then it reddened and lastly black.’
He stated the city, in Gansu province, has actually not experienced a sandstorm of that magnitude in years.
Sandstorms prevail in the area each spring however unusual in the summer season, according to state-run news company China News Service.
Visibility plunged to around 791 metres after the local observatory provided a yellow alert for sandstorms at 15.04pm regional time.
China has a four-tier colour-coded weather condition caution system for sandstorms, with red representing the most serious, followed by orange, yellow, and blue.
Tourists who had actually gone to the close-by Mingsha Mountain and Crescent Lake Nature Park saw the day end in mayhem when the majority of their valuables were blown away in the storm.
The group had actually prepared to see the sundown in between the dune, which provide a singing noise when the wind blows, however were required to gather together when the huge clouds of smoke blew over them.
Dunhuang is house to numerous significant traveler destinations consisting of the Mogao Caves, a UNESCO World Heritage website with ancient Buddhist carvings, and striking desert landforms.
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