40-mph gusts, blinding dust expected to make Tri-Cities highways treacherous

Blowing dust is expected to turn skies nasty and make driving hazardous in the Tri-Cities area on Tuesday.

The National Weather Service has issued a blowing dust advisory from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday from the Oregon state line south of the Tri-Cities to as far north as the Grand Coulee Dam.

In the Tri-Cities sustained wind speeds of 20 to 25 mph, with the wind blowing from the northeast, are forecast after 11 a.m. with gusts as high as 40 mph.

Visibility in much of Eastern Washington could drop to a quarter to a mile because of blowing dust, especially near freshly plowed fields, according to the weather service.

Drivers who run into dense dust should pull off the pavement as far as possible, turn off lights and take their foot of the brake pedal to be sure tail lights are not illuminated so other drivers don’t hit you from behind.

If they cannot pull off the road, they should use the center line to guide them, turn on their lights and sound their horn occasionally until they reach a safe place to pull off the road.

After 8 p.m. Tuesday the wind could slow some, but patches of blowing dust are possible until 11 p.m.

Wednesday also could be breezy in the Tri-Cities with sustained wind speeds of 16 to 20 mph and gusts as high as 28 mph.