Images capture orange dust storm that swallowed an Australian town

A striking cloud of thick red dust has covered the small town of Charleville in rural Queensland after wild weather swept through the state.

The dust storm sweeps towards Charleville, Queensland.

The dust phenomenon occurred on Tuesday when high winds swept through the area kicking up dust that had settled after a spell of dry weather.

While dust storms are not uncommon in the area, locals said it was unusual for the dust cover to be so thick and brightly coloured.

Heavy rain and damaging winds left other parts of northern and inland Queensland with a large cleanup operation after trees were uprooted and roofs ripped off during the storm’s peak.

Read Amy McNeilage’s story in The Guardian - “Images capture orange dust storm that swallowed an Australian town.”

See it, say it: Climate change.

“NOTHING MORE than ash and bones.” That grim description of how some victims were found underscores the horror of the wildfires that swept through and devastated Northern California. At least 38 people were killed, including a 14-year-old boy found dead in the driveway of the home he was trying to flee, a 28-year-woman confined to a wheelchair and a couple who recently had celebrated their 75th anniversary. In addition to the lives lost, approximately 5,700 homes and businesses were destroyed, including entire neighborhoods turned into smoldering ruins.

A firefighter works to defend homes from the
approaching wildfire in Sonoma, Calif., on Saturday. 

Some 220,000 acres, including prized vineyards, have been scorched, and the danger is not over, as some fires are still burning and officials fear the return of winds could spread more catastrophe. Fire season is part of life in California, something that residents know and prepare for after the hot, dry summer months. But the events that began last Sunday have been unprecedented, and so the question that must be confronted is what caused the deadliest week of wildfires in the state’s history.

Gov. Jerry Brown (D) pointed the finger at climate change. “With a warming climate, dry weather and reducing moisture, these kinds of catastrophes have happened and will continue to happen and we have to be ready to mitigate, and it’s going to cost a lot of money,” he said last week.

Read The Post’s View from The Washington Post - “See it, say it: Climate change.”