A weather system should protect the Triad from a giant Saharan dust plume engulfing portions of the Southeast for the next few days, a local official said Wednesday.

“Once more westerly winds begin to set up by Saturday, things could change,” said Jason Bodenhamer with the Forsyth County Office of Environmental Assistance and Protection, which monitors air quality in the region.

The cloud is causing elevated particle pollution in Florida, Georgia, Alabama and South Carolina. Inhaled particles can be extremely unhealthy, especially when they are small enough to penetrate the lungs and bloodstream, according to the Environmental Protection Agency,

The plume was swept up from Africa’s Saraha Desert in June and blown more than 5,000 miles to the U.S. It blanketed much of the Caribbean early

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