Boaters off the coast of Spain got quite the show from Mother Nature that looked more like a Hollywood disaster movie.
Anton Adanero Guinea was boating off the eastern side of the island of Majorca when he observed not one but four waterspouts amid stormy weather in the area.
Generally speaking, waterspouts are simply tornadoes that form over the water. There are two different types of waterspouts, and one is considered more dangerous than the other.
“Tornadic” waterspouts form from severe thunderstorms just like tornados. They occur during strong winds, locally high seas, lighting, and hail. The storms can be incredibly dangerous for any mariners caught in their path.
The second type is known as “fair weather” waterspouts which usually form over open water.
“They develop at the surface of the water and climb skyward associated with warm water temperatures and high humidity in the lowest several thousand feet of the atmosphere,” said Meteorologist Bruce B. Smith with the National Weather Service office in Gaylord, Michigan. “They are usually small, relatively brief, and less dangerous.”
There was some bad weather in the area these waterspouts formed, but meteorologists classified them as “fair weather” waterspouts.
The National Weather Service recommends that any boaters who encounters a waterspout (even if it’s a fair weather) to move at a 90-degree angle away from its path.
@antena3com @tiempobrasero @rtve @cuatro @informativost5 Mallorca! pic.twitter.com/TTtW2M8Cew
— ENTJ (@cualify) September 16, 2022
On August 8, 2011, tourists captured a huge waterspout off the coast of Grand Cayman Island.
On February 21, 2021, the knuckleheads below were 25 miles off the coast of Key West. The fisherman decided to “check an item off their bucket list” and drove their boat threw one to see what it was like.
The waterspout below was captured on August 16, 2022, off the coast of Destin, Florida. According to local meteorologist Lee Southwick it was a tornadic waterspout.
