What appeared to be a weather event more commonly sighted in the tropics was spotted near Salmon Arm early in the morning on July 4.

Looking across Salmon Arm Bay from her home in Sunnybrae, Faye Donald spotted a tube-shaped cloud drifting perpendicular to the ground and was able to snap some photos.

The formation appeared to be a water spout, which National Geographic describes as a column of rotating, cloud-filled wind. Waterspouts descend from cumulus clouds to oceans and lakes; they are most common in tropical and sub tropical waters because they require high humidity and water that is warm compared to the air above.

Donald said she had never seen a water spout on Shuswap Lake before; This one reached the land but no damage was reported near Salmon Arm. According to Natural Geographic most waterspouts fall into the 鈥渇air weather鈥� category and are rarely dangerous. The clouds these waterspouts descend from are slow-moving and the spouts are associated with developing storm systems.

Like us on and follow us on