KARACHI: A rare weather phenomenon – a fair weather waterspout – was witnessed by WWF-Pakistan trained fisherman, Mahar Gul, near Sakoni, on the coast of Balochistan on the morning of February 28, 2016.

Gul, while fishing for tuna some 25 nautical miles from the coastline, witnessed the spectacular waterspout, which resembles a tornado.

The fishermen, Mahar Gul and Nakhuda of the fishing boat ‘Hammal’, started recording the strange weather event on their cell phones but avoided getting close to the vortex created by the waterspout.

Local fishermen avoid approaching such waterspouts, as they can be dangerous and may damage fishing boats.

“Fair weather waterspouts are usually formed along the cumulus type of clouds. This type of waterspout is generally not associated with thunderstorms which usually dissipate in short time,” explained Muhammad Moazzam Khan of WWF-Pakistan.

He added that the average spout is around 50 metres in diameter, with wind speeds of 80 kilometres per hour.

“Most waterspouts last for up to one hour, though the average lifetime is just five to ten minutes,” added Khan.

The formation of a waterspout takes place over five stages; first stage is the formation of a disk on the surface of water, known as a dark spot; second stage is a spiral pattern on the water surface; third stage is a formation of a spray ring; fourth stage is where the waterspout becomes a visible funnel and the lifecycle ends with the fifth stage when the waterspout decays.

According to Khan, it is a natural phenomenon of rare occurrence. These waterspouts can be both beautiful as well as dangerous. They have been known to overturn boats, damage large ships, and put lives in jeopardy.

A waterspout, unlike its name, is not filled with water but is a column of cloud-filled wind rotating over the ocean’s surface. It descends from a cumulus cloud and the water inside a waterspout is formed by condensation in the cloud.

There are two types of waterspouts, tornadic and fair-weather. The clouds from which waterspouts descend are not fast-moving, so fair-weather waterspouts are often static. Both waterspouts require high levels of humidity and a relatively warm water temperature compared to the overlying air.

Waterspouts are most common in tropical and subtropical waters but no authentic record of their occurrence is known from Pakistan coast.