'Godzilla dust cloud' from Sahara blankets Caribbean on its way to US [View all]

[marmar]

'Godzilla dust cloud' from Sahara blankets Caribbean on its way to US
Air quality sinks to hazardous levels as biggest cloud seen in a generation swamps region after transatlantic journey


A vast cloud of Sahara dust is blanketing the Caribbean as it heads to the US with a size and concentration that experts say hasn’t been seen in half a century.

Air quality across most of the region reached record “hazardous” levels and experts who nicknamed the event the “Godzilla dust cloud” warned people to stay indoors and use air filters if they had them.

“This is the most significant event in the past 50 years,” said Pablo Méndez Lázaro, an environmental health specialist at the University of Puerto Rico. “Conditions are dangerous in many Caribbean islands.”

Many health specialists were concerned about those battling respiratory symptoms tied to the coronavirus pandemic. Lázaro, who is working with Nasa to develop an alert system for the arrival of Sahara dust, said the concentration was so high in recent days that it could even have adverse effects on healthy people. .............(more)

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jun/23/godzilla-dust-cloud-from-sahara-blankets-caribbean-on-its-way-to-us