Residents of West Virginia and Maryland woke up Friday to find mysterious white dust falling from the sky and coating their cars — fueling conspiracy theories and an investigation by environmental officials in at least one state.
Photos and videos of the peculiar particles falling from the sky flooded social media, leaving residents to speculate about what it could be.
Sherry Miller of Inwood, West Virginia, said she and her husband were confused when they saw something unusual in the driveway. It was too warm for it to be snowing.
“We had no idea what it was,” Miller told DC News Now. “It looked like ash. I asked my husband if it was from the wood stove and he said, ‘No, it’s all over Berkeley County.'”
But as some uneasy residents questioned whether the strange dust was related to the Feb. 3 toxic train derailment in Ohio, environmental officials quickly shot down rumors.
Terry Fletcher, a spokesperson for the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection, said on Friday that there was no indication it was related to the devastating derailment.
The department collected samples of the fallen dust to have them analyzed over the weekend.
On Monday, the department eased concerns when it determined that the mysterious dust was predominantly pollen, with trace amounts of mineral matter.
The samples were investigated by West Virginia University’s Department of Geology and Geography and the university’s Shared Research Facility.
UPDATE – Feb. 27, 2023: Final results from the dust samples collected Friday indicate the material is predominantly pollen, with trace amounts of mineral matter.
The samples were analyzed by WVU's Dept. of Geology and Geography and WVU's Shared Research Facility. https://t.co/Wy61b2zbzF
— WV Dept. of Environmental Protection (@DEPWV) February 27, 2023Samples were also taken to the West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey to determine whether the dust was from a recent dust storm in Texas and New Mexico that traveled east through Ohio, Michigan and Kentucky on Thursday.
According to some meteorologists tracking blowing dust in New Mexico, Texas and Oklahoma, the layer of dust moved from the Great Plains to West Virginia.
Scott Bachmeier, with the Cooperative Institute for Meteorological Satellite Studies, told the outlet, “it’s all but certain that this dust layer eventually moved across the DC area a few hours later.”
DC News Now meteorologist Damon Matson agreed, “It picked up the dust on the back side of the storm and dragged it across the country. The dust remained elevated in the atmosphere as the storm remained strong.”
With Post wires
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