the upcoming summer in australia is going to suck this year
this morning people in sydney woke up to this
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A DUST storm that has blanketed Sydney and parts of New South Wales is the worst in 70 years, if not the history of the state.
The Bureau of Meterology said the storm, which has now hit Brisbane, was an "extremely rare event".
“It's one of the worst, if not the worst,” BoM NSW regional director Barry Hanstrum said.
Residents of Sydney and parts of NSW including Moree and Dubbo awoke to scenes likened to "armageddon", with limited visibility and orange skies. The conditions are expected to clear later today.
Forecaster Bryan Rollston said the dust, from drought-ravaged western NSW, was propelled by a change from northern to southerly winds.
Low visibility
Tony Auden, a forecaster for the Queensland weather bureau, said Brisbane experienced about one dust storm every couple of years.
“But this is definitely the worst we’ve seen in several years,” Mr Auden said.
“Visibility is at 200 metres at Brisbane Airport.”
He said the dust over the city should clear overnight.
A Sydney Airport spokesman said a combination of strong cross winds and low visibility would lead to flight delays throughout the day.
“We're operating in low visibility conditions due to strong winds and dust haze,” he said.
“Departure and arrivals delays will be experienced at both Sydney and domestic and international airports."
Fire services have been kept busy as alarms were activated around Sydney.
One Sydney resident said on Twitter: "Fire alarm in apartment won't shut up. Argh! I slept through it too. Sky is red also. Slightly freaking me out. Back to bed."
Other Twitter posts included:
Tors: Is it the end of the world? Sydney sky is red like in a Stephen King novel.
Dawn: gale, creepy red fog, sound of sirens. WTF? Expecting Martian war machine to lurch into view any minute.
Sydneysiders with allergies and respiratory problems are being told to stay inside.
The NSW Department of Education said it would ask school principals to keep students indoors today, cancel any planned physical education activities and to keep a special eye on students with asthma or other respiratory conditions.
And while it would be business-as-usual for most workers today, the NSW Business Chamber said some people would choose to work from home to avoid the dust and bad traffic conditions.
"But in general, we expect workers will just muddle through and make the best of it," spokesman Chris Taylor said.
The red dust covering Sydney was swept up and carried east by gale-force winds from further inland, where years of drought have left the earth dry.
The gusts hit Broken Hill on their way to the coast, forcing the closure of one mine. Visibility is reportedly down to just 10m in the town.
Sydney airport this morning recorded gusts of wind thick with dust travelling up to 80km/h.
Authorities have warned the winds will continue to affect Sydney through the day.
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