Did you wake up to find a light layer of red dust covering your car on Monday 31st? If so you're not alone, as millions of Britons found an inexplicable coating on their vehicles too.
But where did it come from? Met Office meteorologist Emma Sharples explained to Devon newspaper the Express and Echo that a number of factors combined to deliver the red dust.
‘A sandstorm in the Saharan region, the wind from the south/south-east, and the right sort of rain’ she said.
‘You need a light rain, not too much – just enough to bring it down and then when it dries out it leaves that residue on cars.’
The car of Prime Minister David Cameron was also filmed in the African dust.
Adding a touch of exotic North Africa to millions of British vehicles, the red dust was seen in all parts of the country. But the novelty of Saharan sand on your roof top may not be so appealing if you spent your Sunday afternoon washing your ride.
But aside from the adverse effect on the cosmetics of your car, the dust poses no other threat to the mechanics of your vehicle, except perhaps clogging up your windscreen washer ducts.
If you do suffer from such an issue, please refrain from calling your vehicle breakdown cover provider! A squirt of compressed air should do the trick. And if it doesn't, read this informative guide on how to dislodge unwanted Saharan sand – and other particles!
Breakdown Cover from 
