This article is from the archive of our partner 
.
Yesterday, a freak sandstorm covered Tehran in a massive cloud of dust and sand, killing five and injuring at least 40 people. The storm quickly blocked out the sun, and whipped winds to 75 miles per hour, prompting plummeting temperatures, car accidents and power outages. Those killed were presumably victims of falling trees. If all that wasn't enough, it started to rain after a 15-minute-long blackout.
According to an eyewitness, "the dustball came out of nowhere and suddenly everywhere went dark." Another said, "I've never seen anything like this. I was afraid it was an omen of things to come." And photos from yesterday show an eerie scene:
TEHRAN DUST STORM - A picture is worth a thousand words - #IRAN ISNA pic.twitter.com/pbyLIgnW8G
— Mehrzad Kohanrouz (@MehrzadBBC) June 2, 2014
"The #Tehran sky has an odd, almost sinister color today" - By Abolfazl Salmanzadeh for EverydayIran. pic.twitter.com/c8bO9YLo7X
— Sidewalk Lyrics (@pedestrian) June 3, 2014
MASSIVE sand storm hitting #Tehran right now. Checking reports Milad Tower being evacuated pic.twitter.com/F2He0jfFvR (via @NegarMortazavi)
— Muhammad Lila (@MuhammadLila) June 2, 2014
New sandstorm warning for Tehran after yesterday's freak weather kills 5: http://t.co/BLHXmxClDE pic.twitter.com/pBQQqrayb3
— Yahoo (@Yahoo) June 3, 2014Iran's Fars News Agency uploaded footage of the storm, which shows just how quickly the sky changed as the sand consumed everything and the city descended into chaos:
Tehran officials said that at least 7,000 emergency workers were sent out to handle the situation, and warned that bad weather could continue through Wednesday.
This article is from the archive of our partner The Wire.
