How to prepare for dangerous dust storms while driving
Kiera McKinney
THOUSAND PALMS, Calif (KESQ)- Monsoon season can bring blowing dust with little warning, making roads dangerous in seconds. What drivers should do if they’re caught in a dust storm, the biggest mistakes officers see when visibility drops, and how people can prepare before getting behind the wheel.
We talked to driving officials and people if they are educated on what to do when a dust storm occurs.
The monsoonal winds can change those roadway conditions in just a few moments. Those conditions can cause drivers to lose visibility and have to make quick decisions behind the wheel.
Dan Covey, a resident of the valley said, “I had to stop driving because I couldn’t see, you know, it was blowing sand and wind and the whistle to. And vision was bad. It was totally bad.”
Some residents don’t know what to do when the blowing dust hits…
“I worry about pulling over because, again, are you going to cause an accident by stopping on the freeway” said Randy Griffin, a resident of the desert.
Andrew Wunderlich, the President at Teen Road to Safety says if weather conditions change, “you got to go slower speeds, its just like when you’re driving in bad weather, any type of bad weather conditions, you got to reduce your speed.
Wunderlich also says “If it gets to the point where you feel like the the wind is starting to maneuver your own car, then that’s the that’s the time where you want to start getting off the freeway and and just wait till the sand storm passes.”
CHP also says dust storms can become dangerous quickly, especially when drivers lose sight of the road around them.
CHP Officer Williams says “when the dust storms come, you lose control your vehicle and you lose, visual, horizon as well. You can’t see”
Experts also warn that trying to push through a dust storm can put more than just one person at risk.
“You’re not only taking the risk of your own self, but the passengers that you have in their car and also the other people that are driving on the roads as well,” Wunderlich says.