The Salerno coastline in south-western Italy was hit by a huge waterspout on Tuesday. The whirling waterspout formed off the Italian coast before making its way on land and striking the city of Salerno. Witnesses have also said the waterspout lifted containers off the ground and broke wire ropes used to moor a ship.
There have been no reports of injuries.
#Maltempo Le immagini della tromba marina che ha colpito il litorale di #Salerno nel primo pomeriggio di oggi 👇🏻 pic.twitter.com/jG707GPBJp
— Rai Radio1 (@Radio1Rai) November 20, 2018
A waterspout is simply a tornado over an open body of water. If a tornado forms over an ocean, lake, or even a river, it is considered to be a waterspout. Waterspouts are typically weaker than most tornadoes, and usually are short lived. In this post, we will look at various images and videos of waterspouts and learn about how they form and the types that can occur.
There are two types of waterspouts we commonly see: A fair weather waterspout and a tornadic waterspout.
Fair weather waterspouts form during “fair” and relatively calm weather. These waterspouts typically occur in the early to mid morning hours, and sometimes in the early afternoon. Fair weather waterspouts typically form along dark flat bases of a line of developing cumulus clouds. Everyone associates tornadoes and waterspouts with thunderstorms, but in a fair weather waterspout, thunderstorms are nonexistent. When fair weather waterspouts form, they typically occur during light wind conditions. Because of this, these waterspouts typically move very little. When these form under fair conditions, circulations typically form at the surface of the water and develops upward.
Waterspouts typically occur in tropical regions, but they can form almost anywhere. They can occur in the Gulf of Mexico, the Great Lakes, western coast of Europe, Mediterranean Sea, and the Baltic Sea. It is important that this phenomenon is common throughout the world, and other countries can easily see these develop. The most common place that typically sees the most waterspouts than anyone else is along the Florida Keys. They typically form during the late spring and summer months, with tornado waterspouts forming after 2 PM in the afternoon. Florida is considered to be most prone area to see tornadoes in the United States.
Waterspouts are typically weaker than tornadoes, but they can still cause a decent amount of damage. It is important for those in the ocean to constantly monitor the weather each and every day. For instance, it could be a smart idea to avoid being in the Florida Keys in the afternoon or evening time when there is a chance for thunderstorms at the coast. If you are on a boat or ship and a waterspout develops, try to navigate and escape the area by going at right angles of its path. NOAA recommends those who are on boats or ships to monitor special marine warnings issued by the National Weather Service. Of course, they highly recommend to avoid navigating through a waterspout. They can cause decent damage, and could hurt or kill you.