Tornado in Tamil Nadu? Rare funnel cloud stuns residents in Thoothukudi; watch

2 min readNew DelhiJun 22, 2026 09:43 AM IST

A tornado forms when warm, moisture-rich air rises rapidly into a thunderstorm and begins rotating (Photo: @navdeepdahiya55/X)

Residents of Thoothukudi in Tamil Nadu witnessed a rare and dramatic weather event on Sunday when a tornado-like funnel cloud briefly appeared during a thunderstorm.

Videos circulating on the Internet showed a narrow, twisting column of storm descending from a dark cloud and stirring up dust at ground level before dissolving within minutes.

Weather observers like Navdeep Dahiya and the popular weather platform Tamil Nadu Weatherman widely shared several videos from distinct angles.

Sharing a video, Dahiya wrote, “Crazy and very close visuals of #Tornado from Toothukudi Airport in #TamilNadu. Folks have not idea what are witnessing. Wind speed under such Tornado could easily be 170-220km/h. By the structure it seems like almost EF2 (Enhanced Fujita scale 178km/h+ winds).”

Watch here:

Crazy and very close visuals of #Tornado from Toothukudi Airport in #TamilNadu.

Folks have not idea what are witnessing.

Wind speed under such Tornado could easily be 170-220km/h. By the structure it seems like almost EF2 (Enhanced Fujita scale 178km/h+ winds) https://t.co/XSDHhpM73e pic.twitter.com/ERmtBmYywa

— Weatherman Navdeep Dahiya (@navdeepdahiya55) June 21, 2026

In another post, the official handle of Tamil Nadu weatherman wrote, “Rare Tornado in Thoothukudi. This is rarest of the rarest.”

Rare Tornado in Thoothukudi. This is rarest of the rarest.

Credits to the concerned. pic.twitter.com/PP3ONCjOc0

— Tamil Nadu Weatherman (@praddy06) June 21, 2026

The videos have since gone viral, prompting a wave of reactions. “Those tornado could throw tons of weight far away. People need to be educated and keep them informed about it. That dangerous thing as much as tsunami,” a social media user wrote. “Nature is for sure changing, high time we humans mend our ways!” another user commented.

“Never thought that we will get to see this in India,” a third user reacted.

What is a tornado?

According to the US-based National Severe Storms Laboratory, a tornado forms when warm, moisture-rich air rises rapidly into a thunderstorm and begins rotating.

India does experience tornadoes, but most occur in eastern and northeastern regions such as West Bengal and Odisha during the pre-monsoon months of March to May. Tamil Nadu, however, rarely experiences such events.