‘Incredibly rare’ fire tornado seen during Canadian wildfires and captured on video
- The fiery phenomenon occurred during the Downton Lake wildfire near Lillooet on Aug. 17 and sparked fear as the skyline turned red
- It was captured on video by ground crews responding to the blaze and shared on social media, where it has been viewed nearly 500,000 times.
- A combination of a cold front moving through the province and a few days of dry and warm weather created the perfect conditions
An incredibly rare fire tornado erupted last week during a wildfire in Canada, sparking flames and debris.
The fiery phenomenon occurred during the Downton Lake wildfire near Lillooet on Aug. 17 and sparked fear as the skyline was painted red.
It was captured on video by ground crews responding to the blaze and shared on social media, where it has been viewed nearly 500,000 times.
The British Columbia Wildfire Service said “fire whirls” are “intensely rotating columns of gas and flame.”
A combination of a cold front moving through the province and several days of dry and warm weather created the perfect conditions for the fire tornado.
An incredibly rare fire Tornado sparked last week during a wildfire in Canada, sparking flames and debris
It is not clear whether the fire tornado resulted in any injuries or further property damage in the area.
The BC Wildfire shared video of the fire tornado on social media platform X and explained its occurrence in a series of posts.
It says the “unique conditions and extreme fire behavior” are not experienced in most wildfires in the area.
Footage shows the storm hurtling through the air, blowing away flames and debris.
The cold front moved through the Gun Lake area between 3 a.m. and 6 a.m., creating unusual conditions for the Downton Lake wildfire.
The fiery phenomenon occurred during the Downton Lake wildfire near Lillooet on Aug. 17 and sparked fear as the skyline was painted red.
A combination of a cold front moving through the province and several days of dry and warm weather created the perfect conditions for the fire tornado
Strong winds from the southwest caused the fires to increase with considerable intensity.
The relative humidity reading of 14 percent at 4 a.m. was “incredibly rare to see at night,” and there was a reduced measure of the amount of moisture in the air of 12 degrees.
This was a significant drop of 68 degrees from the night before.
“Due to this combination of conditions and fire behavior, the fire intensity was more extreme during this nighttime period, reaching intensities not even seen during the day,” the wildfire agency said.
This unique combination of high fire intensity, high winds, and air mass instability led to the formation of the fire tornado over Gun Lake.