Watch: Sandstorms Hit Northwest China, Orange Dust Engulfs Cities

This past Friday, several cities in northwest China found themselves engulfed in orange dust.

Thus, this part of China was hit by powerful sandstorms, which brought down average temperatures by 4 degrees Celsius (39.2 degrees Fahrenheit). 

Moreover, they made it impossible for the Chinese people to venture out of their homes without wearing masks and hoodies.

Some argue that such sandstorms only got this powerful because of the deforestations taking place in the northern and western parts of China.

Prolonged periods of drought were also listed as a contributor to the severity of these storms.

Although sand storms hit China on quite a regular basis, there are many who claim that, as a result of phenomena such as climate change and global warming, there has been an increase in their severity.