MORGANTON, N.C. — A huge dust devil froze workers in their tracks as it spun across an area being graded for a future warehouse in Burke County.
It was all captured on video at the construction site west of Morganton. Pipes, weighing 60 to 80 pounds, were seen rolling across the construction site here west of Morganton.
Dust devils form when a pocket of warm air forms at the surface and rises quickly through cooler air forming an updraft. Most generate wind speeds of 45 miles per hour, but the biggest ones can pack winds of 80 miles per hour.
The sight is rare, especially one so large and long-lasting. Videos captured by workers last over a minute.
James Dishman, a worker at the site, said he’d never seen anything like it in his life.
“If it picked up the pipe the way it did and threw it across the yard, I’m pretty sure it would have picked one of us up easily,” Justin Miller, another worker, said.
Tune in to Eyewitness News at 5 p.m. for more details.