A filmmaker, filled with awe, recounted his encounter with one of nature’s rarest phenomena – a fire tornado.
While scouting locations for a new movie in Alice Springs, Chris Tangey concluded his work and went to assist some workers at a cattle station, where he was surprised by one of nature’s most formidable displays.
Just 300 metres away, a 30-metre high fire swirl erupted, producing a sound akin to a fighter jet, even though the winds were calm in the vicinity.
A fire tornado, or fire devil, occurs when a column of warm air rises and interacts with, or ignites, a fire on the ground.
These fire whirlwinds are typically observed for around two minutes during their rare occurrences.
However, Chris remained transfixed by the tornado for over 40 minutes.
The 52-year-old remarked: “The weather was completely calm, and the temperature was about 25 degrees Celsius – the day was utterly uneventful.
“Then suddenly, a man shouted, ‘What the hell is that?’ I turned and spotted a 30-metre fire tornado.”
“Despite being 300 metres away, the tornado sounded just like a fighter jet. I was in disbelief.”
Chris, who operates Alice Springs Film and Television, dubbed it a “once in ten lifetimes experience.”
He continued, “I’ve been filming in the outback for 23 years, and I’ve never encountered anything like it. We’ve heard tales of them, but they are rarely seen.
“If I had known what was about to unfold, I would have gladly paid $1,000 just to witness it.
“At any given moment, there were three different tornadoes, continuously forming for 40 minutes.
“The overall experience was mind-blowing, with its duration and variety being nothing short of extraordinary.”
Though infrequent, such occurrences can be exceedingly perilous.
In 1923, during Japan’s Great Kanto Earthquake, a fire whirl emerged and resulted in the death of 38,000 individuals within a mere 15 minutes.
by David Livingstone
