Moments of fear

Tornado sweeps over beach in Italy

Italy is being hit more and more frequently by highly explosive tornadoes - but this time the bathers were very lucky.

(Bild: Krone KREATIV/x.com/PavanFederico00)

Italy has been hit by an unusually high number of hurricanes in recent days - a dramatic video (see above) shows the destructive force of one such phenomenon on a beach in Basilicata. It's a sight we'll obviously have to get used to in future.

The video from Monday afternoon shows the tornado "touching down" on the popular beach in Marina di Nova Siri in the Italian region of Basilicata. The tornado literally sent sun loungers and parasols flying around, causing panic and confusion among those present, according to Italian media reports.

Warning for beach vacationers
Shortly beforehand, lightning struck the sea just a few meters from the beach - the explosive storm situation put bathers who had sought refuge at the lido in great danger. It also rained more than 50 mm per square meter in a short period of time: "If a thunderstorm is approaching, you must move away from the beaches!", the "MeteOne Puglia e Basilicata" website warns.

The recent disaster off the coast of Sicily clearly demonstrated just how dramatic an encounter with a waterspout can be: The 54-metre luxury sailing yacht Bayesian sank into the sea on Monday. So far, one body has been recovered and 15 other people are still missing.

The tornado whirled parasols and sun loungers through the air - causing tourists to panic.

(Bild: Krone KREATIV/x.com/PavanFederico00)

The incident in Basilicata was less tragic - fortunately there were no reports of injuries. The tornado dissipated shortly after hitting land. However, videos showing impressive tornadoes were also shared on social media from other regions in southern Italy.

This video shows a tornado that was filmed off Salento: 

Warm sea is like "gasoline tank"
The weeks-long heatwave in the Mediterranean is said to encourage the formation of tornadoes. "The warm sea seems pleasant, but from a physical point of view, heat is energy," meteorologist Paolo Sottocorona told the Daily Mail. "The Mediterranean is a gasoline tank at the moment. If you put a match in it, a stream of cold air like we've had these days, it explodes," explains the expert, who also works as a sailing instructor.  

"The warmer the sea, the stronger the tornadoes," summarizes Sottocorona. Destructive tornadoes used to occur every hundred years. "Now we experience one or more per year. Even weather models have difficulty predicting such intense events." The captain of the Bayesian also had to experience this first-hand: "We didn't see it coming," he said shortly after his rescue, after the mega yacht had sunk 50 meters below the surface. 

Mayor after tornado: "Apocalyptic scenario"
The mayor of Santa Flavia, a town near Palermo, was also shocked after the sighting of a violent waterspout: "I've never seen anything like it. A tornado that lasted about ten minutes, an apocalyptic scenario."