Tornado-Like Storm Rocks Thoothukudi: Met Says 'Not a Tornado' But Damage is Real!
Tornado-Like Storm Rocks Thoothukudi: Met Says 'Not a Tornado' But Damage is Real!
Dramatic storm hits Thoothukudi, causing chaos & injuries! While MeT denies it's a tornado, the powerful winds left a trail of destruction. Get the full story here!
Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu, witnessed a dramatic weather event on Sunday that many described as a 'tornado-like' storm. While visuals showed powerful rotating winds and significant destruction, the Meteorological Department (MeT) has stepped in to clarify the phenomenon, stating it was not, in fact, a true tornado.
According to the MeT department, the rare occurrence was attributed to 'adverse weather' conditions. VR Durai, Director of the regional weather forecasting centre in Chennai, explained that an east-west trough extending approximately 3.1 km above sea level across south Tamil Nadu led to associated convective activity. This generated localised strong winds, dust lifting, and 'vigorous updrafts' near the Thoothukudi airport area. He further elaborated that the observed funnel-like feature was most likely a 'localised convective vortex, dust whirl, or transient funnel cloud,' caused by a strong updraft beneath a cumulonimbus cloud, which lifted dust and created a rotating column of air.
Despite not being a tornado, the gusty winds caused widespread damage and instilled panic. Six people sustained injuries when temporary metal roofing sheets, erected for the airport expansion works, were violently ripped off and fell onto workers and members of the public. The incident unfolded near the Vaagaikulam toll plaza area, where the sudden, powerful winds wreaked havoc. Reports from news agencies and eyewitnesses depicted scenes of devastation, with sheets of tin, broken tree branches, and concrete debris scattered across the ground. The impact of the winds was so severe that glass windows of several vehicles were also shattered.
