By Erik Sietsema
Dust storms swept through the Big Sandy area last Wednesday, creating conditions that vaguely resembled a blizzard for those unlucky enough to be caught out on the highway, piling up “sand dunes” along the edges of fields on the prairie west of town, and knocking out power for the community for several hours. The storm itself was the byproduct of a perfect mix of drought conditions and a severe thunderstorm passing through the area. The result was a dust storm that echoed the 1934 storm, dubbed “The Black Blizzard” by the Mountaineer at the time.
The event started with a massi...