Scientists are predicting that the frequency of dust storms, on
the rise in the last few years, will continue to increase. Some
have also suggested that these storms might well be carrying a
more hazardous payload than meets the eye. Among the dangers
that experts say are blowing in the wind: asthma triggers, toxic
chemicals and infectious disease. "We are experiencing heat
waves and drought across the country. And we anticipate more
dust being blown into the air," said William Sprigg, a dust
storm expert at Chapman University in Orange, Calif. "Anything
that is loose on the soil is going to be picked up by these
storms." A look back 80 years to the Dust Bowl could offer a
hint of what's to come. According to a scientific study
published in October 1935 , Kansas experienced its "most severe
measles epidemic," as well as abnormally high rates of strep
throat, respiratory problems, eye infections and infant
mortality during the intense dust storms that struck from
February to May of that year. The researchers h