After a very slow start to this year’s monsoon season, metro Phoenix has finally seen some storms this week — including a big one on Tuesday night. But was it a haboob? Or a monsoon? A dust storm? And what does it all mean for this very dry summer?

The slow-moving cloud — known as a haboob — hit parts of Phoenix and Arizona City, 60 miles to the southeast, late Monday afternoon, at one point leaving 15,000 energy customers in the dark. The number still without power Tuesday morning was more than 5,000, according to Poweroutage.us, mostly in Maricopa County.

A towering wall of dust, known meteorologically as a haboob, swallowed parts of metro Phoenix Monday evening, plunging the city into near-zero visibility as severe storms caused damage.

A haboob is a dust storm pushed by the wind produced by a weather front or thunderstorm and typically occurs in flat, arid areas. Heavy rain and wind followed Monday's haboob, delaying flights at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport and causing some damage to a terminal roof.

An Arizona couple was expecting to celebrate their wedding when a massive dust storm hit metro Phoenix. A local shop owner stepped in to shelter them.

An incredible time lapse video shows a powerful dust storm, known as a haboob, sweeping across Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport in Arizona on Monday, Aug. 25, 2025.