It’s not a Plague: Just a Gigantic Dust Cloud

If you're here in the Shreveport area and have been outside recently you've probably found yourself coughing or sneezing as if it was springtime all over again. Fret not, spring has already come to pass this year, you likely have just found yourself victim to this year's Saharan Dust Cloud.

Every year starting in the late spring a large layer of dry and dusty air makes its way from the Saharan Desert in Africa and up to the southern United States of America where it will stick around until early to mid fall. This year's dust cloud has made its way here to Louisiana and we are feeling the effects of a two-mile thick layer of dusty and dry air. According to Jason Dunion, of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the dust cloud can help keep it cool outside but still, the clouds come with all sorts of health issues.

The heavy air comes with all sorts of allergy-adjacent symptoms, which many people worry could be signs of an oncoming illness. Some symptoms the dust cloud can cause include, coughing, wheezing, chest congestion, flu-like body aches, and headaches. If you are worried about becoming ill but can't tell if it's just the dust, Richard Broyles, a Respiratory Therapist at Baptist Health System, says the key difference between dust cloud symptoms and real illness, is a fever. Broyles suggests checking your temperature in case you feel like you may be coming down with an illness and to seek medical care as you always should if you are to become ill.