Tafsir of Al-Haqqah 69:5

"As for Thamud, they were destroyed": That is, Allah the Exalted destroyed them. Zayd ibn Ali recited it as fahalakū (they perished), in the active voice.

"By the Taghiyah (the Overwhelming Disaster)": That is, the event that exceeded the limit, which is the Sayhah (the Cry/Blast), due to the words of the Exalted in [Surah] Hud: "And the Sayhah seized those who had wronged." By this, the Sa'iqah (the Thunderbolt) in [Surah] Ha Mim as-Sajdah is explained, or [it refers to] the Rajfah (the Trembling), due to His words, glory be to Him, in [Surah] al-A'raf: "And the Rajfah seized them," which is the earthquake caused by the Cry. Thus, there is no contradiction between the verses, for the attribution in some is to the proximate cause and in others to the remote cause. The first [interpretation—the Cry] is narrated from Qatadah; he said: "By the Cry which went beyond the limit of every [other] cry."

Ibn Abbas, Abu Ubaydah, and Ibn Zayd said—the meaning of which is—that at-Taghiyah is an infinitive (verbal noun), as if it were said: "by their transgression (tughyanihim)." This is supported by His words, the Exalted: "Thamud denied by their transgression (bi-taghwaha)." However, the relied-upon view is the first, due to the place of His words, the Exalted: [Proceeding verse...].