Swarm of waterspouts off Finland coast leave onlookers in awe

While they are not unheard of in the region, the number of waterspouts that occurred so closely together is unusual, experts say. Photo courtesy RAJA/Finnish Border Guard

July 19 — Typically when stormy weather is in the forecast, many people avoid the beach or going out on a boat. However, that wasn’t the case for many vacationers in southwestern Finland who rushed to the sea to witness an awe-inspiring weather phenomenon last weekend.

As a storm rolled in and the sky turned dark, Nina Rantanen, a vacationer in Kustavi on the southwestern coast of Finland, watched in awe as five waterspouts began swirling in the sea. Rantanen quickly grabbed her phone to capture the spectacular moment.

Rantanen told local media that people lined up watching as the massive waterspouts spun in the distance. She said some were narrower while others “were clearly stronger.”

According to AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Tyler Roys, an area of low pressure that was moving away from southern Finland and into Russia, along with another area of low pressure that came up the Russian-Baltic state border, were the catalysts for the unsettled weather and the unusual spectacle.

Just southeast of Kustavi — off of Isokari, an island on the southwest coast of Finland — a cargo ship encountered some of the same weather. Jeffery Ripson, the ship’s captain, told Storyful that his crew members witnessed an unusual phenomenon on July 9.

Crew members aboard the vessel reached for their phones in a hurry to capture the moment three swirling waterspouts simultaneously hit the sea.

Ville Siiskonen, a meteorologist at the Finnish Meteorological Institute, told local media that these waterspouts are especially dangerous for boats on the water. Even a small waterspout can collect enough water to capsize boats in the water.

As the weekend came to a close, the stormy weather remained and more waterspouts were reported.

On July 11, a member of the Finnish Border Guard observed as many as seven simultaneous waterspouts off the northern part of Åland, a group of islands off the southwest coast of Finland.

“Waterspouts are tornadoes that occur over water,” Roys explained. “They tend to occur from showers or thunderstorms.”

Waterspouts can also form when there is no thunderstorm present and conditions are just right. “Fair weather” waterspouts can develop when there are large differences in air and water temperature and commonly occur across the Great Lakes in the United States.

While they are not unheard of in the region, the number of waterspouts that occurred so closely together is unusual.

“It was rare to see so many waterspouts in such a close proximity,” the Finnish Meteorological Institute wrote.

Since 1980, there have been around 100 reported waterspouts in that region, according to the European Severe Weather Database. According to Roys, given the nature of not reporting severe weather for much of the 40-year period, this number is likely an undercount and there likely have been more waterspouts than 100.