Dust storm and rain hit Muscat
'The brown cover of sand was just fantastic site,' says a resident
Muscat: A dust storm swept across Muscat late on Wednesday, reducing visibility in most areas; a mild rain brought the temperatures down.
The mountainous city was getting ready for the opening of an opulent 1100-seat Royal Opera House by Sultan Qaboos Bin Saeed when the sand-storm hit the town creating a brown carpet.
“The brown cover of sand was just fantastic site,” Shilpa Ashar, a long-time Muscat resident said. She added that even plants in her compound were not visible in the dust cover and so was a valley behind their house.
"Sand completely covered cars on the road and people drove with hazard lights on," she said.
The sandstorm was brief as light rains settled the sand that rose after the storm.
“The dust storm was scary but also helped bring down the temperature,” a relieved Yusuf Al Zedjali said.
For Kishor Cariappa, a blogger, the experience was unnerving. “In my seven-year stay in Oman I have not seen anything like that,” he said, adding that looking at dust storm that engulfed mountains and most parts of Muscat was ‘eerie’.
“Fortunately, it didn’t last long and rain that followed settled all the sand,” he added.
