CHENNAI: A dramatic funnel-like cloud formation accompanied by rising dust observed near the Thoothukudi Airport on Sunday was not a tornado, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) clarified on Monday (June 22).

The weather agency said that it was a localised convective vortex or dust whirl. Videos of the cloud formation, taken from different angles, are being widely circulated on the internet, by tagging it as a rare tornado in Tamil Nadu.

Following a detailed meteorological analysis, the IMD assessed that the feature was more consistent with a localised convective vortex, a dust whirl, or a transient funnel cloud associated with thunderstorm activity, rather than a true tornado.

The RMC in Chennai stated that thunderstorm activity developed over the Thoothukudi region under the influence of an east-west trough extending across South Tamil Nadu at about 3.1 km above mean sea level.

These prevailing atmospheric conditions supported the development of deep convective Cumulonimbus clouds, resulting in localised thunderstorms associated with strong updrafts, gusty winds, and dust lifting in and around the airport area.

The funnel-like feature was likely associated with a strong convective updraft beneath a cloud base that lifted loose particles from the surface, creating the appearance of a rotating column of air, the press release from the agency added.

VR Durai, head of the Regional Weather Forecasting Centre at the IMD in Chennai, emphasised in the statement that while strong. Cumulonimbus clouds can occasionally produce brief funnel-like formations and gusty winds, the likelihood of tornado development over Thoothukudi during the Southwest Monsoon season remains low.