Dust devil turns tumbleweeds into firestorm

A terrifying firestorm has been filmed in the US after hundreds of tumbleweeds were picked up by a dust devil and swept into what was meant to be a controlled burn.

Firefighters were forced to run for cover as the dust devil – an American term for a strong and sustained whirlwind – turned the tumbleweeds into flying incendiaries in a dramatic scene at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal wildlife refuge near Denver, Colorado.

Video filmed by Thomas Rogers shows the moment the unexpected wind put those fighting the 60 hectare blaze in the inferno's path.

"Well, that escalated quickly," Mr Rogers, a firefighter at the scene, says in the footage uploaded online.

"How often do you see that?" another firefighter says as the whirlwind crawls towards them.

Incredibly, the terrifying whirlwind only burnt an extra half hectare of land, lasting about five minutes before it eventually slowed to a crawl.

"It was just really amazing to watch," Mr Rogers told KUSA TV.

"There's nothing you can do except get out of the way and wait for it to calm down."

Source: New York Daily News.