Canaries flights suspended as Saharan sand blankets islands

A plane is seen parked on a tarmac during a sandstorm blown over from North Africa known as "calima" at Las Palmas Airport, Canary Islands, Gran Canaria, February 22, 2020. REUTERS/Borja Suarez

GRAN CANARIA, Spain (Reuters) - Spain's airport operator AENA suspended all flights in and out of Gran Canaria and all flights leaving Tenerife on Saturday evening after a storm carrying clouds of red sand from the Sahara hit the Canaries and severely reduced visibility.

At least 19 flights to Gran Canaria were diverted, a spokeswoman for AENA said. She did not specify which airlines had been affected.