Meteorology plays a fundamental role during a fire and the fire itself can, in turn, modify previous conditions, creating its own environment with phenomenon as bizarre as the one that a firefighter who worked in extinction works in British Columbia (Canada) was able to capture a few days ago.

A relentless wave of wildfires has been ravaging Canada since March. Intensity increased in June and all provinces and territories were affected.

Until August 21, more than 5,800 fires have been declared in the country, affecting 15 million hectares. This represents 4% of the total forest area and is six times higher than the annual average. Five deaths have been reported and 156,000 people have been evacuated from their homes.

Tornado, dust storm or marine manga?

Let’s analyze three phenomena apparently very similar to each other, but whose differences lie in the response to the phenomenon captured on video.

Tornado

In the images, a funnel can be seen spinning violently on the waters of a lake. A stream of water near the surface indicates strong winds, of the order of 90 km/h. The duration and extent of the phenomenon suggest that a tornado, connected to the base of a vertically developing cloud (cumulus or cumulonimbus).

A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is usually connected to the base of a cloud.. Tornadoes can form on land or over large bodies of water. In the latter case, they are called sleeves or waterspouts.

Dust storm and “fire whirlwind”

Dust storms are small dust devils which form on very hot surfaces such as deserts. They are not considered tornadoes since they have no connection with the base of a cloud (funnel cloud)., but they form in good weather, with clear skies. They are less intense in size and duration than tornadoes.

The environment of a fire is an idyllic place for the formation of dust storms like those observed near the astronomical observatory of Izaña in Tenerife. Strong surface heating generates thermals: pockets of hot air (less dense than ambient air) that rotate and stretch vertically. Swirling winds during dust storms can suck flames from a nearby fire, forming what are informally known as “fire whirlpools”..

It was most likely a tornado caused by the arrival of a cold front in the area. The strong rising air in the burning core of the fire interacted with cooler air in the middle levels of the troposphere.

It is excluded that the phenomenon of the video is a dust stormbecause it would disintegrate when it hit the water and the whirlpool would appear much smaller and disorganized.

A potentially deadly phenomenon

Needless to say, a tornado accompanied by a violent forest fire is the worst of all combinations. The associated strong winds can spread the flames at high speed.although in a small area.

The unpredictable nature of tornadoes and dust storms makes them deadly to people nearby, including firefighting crews. It is for this reason that the weather plays a crucial role in the development of a fire. Micro-scale phenomena, such as tornadoes, can change the course of events.