Dust devil causes chaos as it sends furniture flying at Las Vegas hotel pool

Weather event caused by surface heating

Plastic furniture was sent flying and swimmers were evacuated from a hotel pool after a dust devil struck a hotel in Las Vegas.

The weather event struck the Luxor Hotel and Casino on Friday afternoon, when more than a dozen people were in the swimming pool at the time.

TikTok user HollyVagabond captured video of the moment the dust devil struck. She wrote in a caption: “This just happened in Luxor Las Vegas pool”.

Her video showed winds swirling around the pool and furniture flung into the air. Some people appeared to sustain injuries and were hit by bits of furinture.

Inflatables were also seen flying above people’s heads, and screams rang-out across the pool area as a number of people fell.

A lifeguard could be heard blowing a whistle to evacuate the pool immediately after the dust devil subsided, sending people running.

Many were caught by surprise by the weather event, which is common in many parts of the US, according to the National Weather Service (NWS).

“I was there, it was definitely an experience,” wrote another TikTok user, Valerie. “Luckily my kids, my mom, and myself were fine but a lot of people got hit by chairs.”

“I lifeguarded there almost 20 years ago now and the same thing happened,” another person added, “Came across the water and then hit the pool deck throwing chairs around.”

The NWS says dust devils can be as high as 1,000 feet and as wide as 300ft although are usually smaller. They are less intenense than tornados and typically only last a few minutes.

According to the NWS, hot surface temperatures are the main cause of dust devils, with the event usually occurring in clear weather and light winds.