1 Dead In Massive Dust Storm
Man Electrocuted By Downed Power Line
POSTED: 6:54 am PDT July 20, 2007
UPDATED: 12:33 pm PDT July 20, 2007
PHOENIX -- A massive dust storm slammed into the Phoenix area overnight, electrocuting one man and sparking power outages while battering the Valley with high winds and lightning.
It's the second night in a row that a high-powered storm developed rapidly in the southern Arizona deserts and barreled through the Valley with damaging winds and a towering wall of dust. The storm brewed while Phoenix still awaits the official start of the monsoon, which is running almost two weeks behind schedule. Typically, the Valley will see a rash of monsoon-driven dust storms from July 7 to Sept. 13.
Police said in Thursday night's storm, it appeared that lightning or wind snapped a power line, which ran through an alley behind Samuel Garland's house near 44th Street and Thomas Road.
The downed line caused a power outage in Garland's home and the 29-year-old went outside to investigate.
A few minutes later, when her husband failed to come back inside, Garland's wife went looking for him.
Police said she found him lying on the ground with a live arcing power line on or near his body.
SRP shut off the power to the downed line so that paramedics could examine Garland, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.
Garland's wife was not injured.
Storm Impacts Airport Operations
Thursday night's massive dust storm put Sky Harbor International Airport on alert for 50 mile per hour winds gusts.
The control tower said it staggered inbound flights as pilots fought high winds aloft.
The storm was 40 miles long by 1,700 feet high, according to News Hawk 5 Captain Connie Sullivan.
Visibility on Hunt Highway in Gilbert was reduced to less than five feet.
In Queen Creek, winds caused a pickup truck to roll over. The driver escaped serious injuries.
More than 3,200 customers of the Salt River Project lost power at the height of the storm, which also produced danergous lightning.
Weather Watch 5 meteorologists said Valley residents can expect another round of severe storms Friday night as moist, unstable air continues to churn up the atmosphere.
1 Dead In Massive Dust Storm
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