'Godzilla dust cloud' drifts over U.S. Southeast, raising health concerns

A general view of Cancun as dust carried by winds from the Sahara desert shrouds the city, Mexico June 25, 2020. REUTERS/Jorge Delgado

(Reuters) - A massive plume of dust whipped up from the Sahara desert will hover over the U.S. Southeast this weekend, forecasters say, shrouding the region in a brown haze and raising more health concerns in states where the coronavirus crisis is worsening.

The 3,500-mile-long (5,600 km) cloud, dubbed the "Godzilla dust cloud," traveled 5,000 miles (8,047 km) from North Africa before reaching the region stretching from Florida west into Texas and north into North Carolina through Arkansas, the National Weather Service (NWS) said.