Sydney has been hit by red dust from Australia's red desert for the second time this week. The weather bureau said wild winds whipped up dust storms across Queensland and New South Wales overnight, bringing fresh clouds of grit from thousands of kilometres away. Forecaster Barry Hanstrum said satellite pictures showed a band of dust about 200 kilometres wide, sweeping from central Australia towards the east coast, with visibility in Sydney limited to five kilometres. Millions of tonnes of dust smothered northeastern Australia in a rust-red dawn on Wednesday which left hundreds of people hospitalized with breathing problems.