At least nine towering waterspouts were spotted Monday over the central portion of China’s largest lake, the Qinghai Lake, in the country’s northwest.
Video footage provided by Tsering showed a white rotating column over the blue lake, just off the shore of an island in the lake center. Minutes later, a second, S-shaped, funnel cloud took shape near the first one.
The twin spouts were followed by seven other clouds near the lake center island in a period of about 40 minutes, witnesses said.
Even though waterspouts are on water, they can still pose a danger to swimmers, boaters, aircraft and people living near beaches.