Lifestyle

Rare Scenes from Dubrovnik: City Covered with African Sand

By 23 March 2016

It was 50 shades of orange today in Dubrovnik.

Dubrovnik residents woke up on March 23, 2016, in a city covered with a thick orange fog, The Dubrovnik Times reported. Even though Dubrovnik is recognised all over the world as a destination of mild winters and long hot summers, today, locals and tourists witnessed a real sand storm.

This weather anomaly was caused by southern winds that have blown up sands from the Sahara desert. The historic city was almost completely visible from all observation points while cars and buildings have turned an orange hue.

EUMETSAT image showing the sand cloud over the Mediterranean

“In my sixty years of living in Dubrovnik I have never experienced anything like this before,” explained a local resident to The Dubrovnik Times. “Let’s just hope that it doesn’t start to rain as the whole city will be covered in sand,” he added.

Photos by The Dubrovnik Times

Gale force southern winds blew overnight and brought a thick blanket of sand. Residents woke to find their cars completely covered in yellow, sandy blotches, and since during the morning the wind picked up, conditions got even worse as residents and tourists could be seen shielding their faces and covering their mouths to avoid getting a mouthful of sand. Conditions are expected to improve by the end of the day when the southern wind will slowly be replaced by Bura.

Search