Onlookers capture breathtaking photos and video of monstrous tornado roaring through field in Romania
A breathtaking tornado was captured on video and in photos by onlookers in Romania on Tuesday. One video, which was shot by an intrepid man at around 6 p.m. local time and briefly streamed live on Facebook, showed the monster twister churning up dust clouds as it tore through the plains in southeastern Calarasi County, in the Muntenia region -- about 51 miles due east of Bucharest, Romania's capital.
Other videos and photos depicted the towering tornado from various vantage points.
According to local Romanian media Libertatea, the tornado caused seven injuries and damage to some agricultural vehicles and rural facilities. The wounded were passengers aboard a bus that was carrying 39 people and was lifted by the wind and thrown 10 meters into a nearby field, according to the report. Photos taken at the scene showed the green passenger bus lying on its side in the field with its windshield shattered and blown out.
Another report from local media indicated that several houses sustained damage from the tornado.
"[It] looks like a strong cold front triggered severe weather in southern Romania today, including that tornado," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Eric Leister said.
"The same storm system produced a thunderstorm that brought strong winds to Bucharest earlier in the day, Leister said. "A temperature drop of 15-20 degrees followed the storm," he added.
The footage shows the massive tornado in all of its natural glory and looks as though it was captured by an experienced storm chaser. However, the video was actually recorded by Mircea Surcel, who, according to his Facebook page, is a music teacher from the town of Calarasi.
The astonishing nature of this phenomenon lies in the contrast that can be seen between the dust of the base of the tornado rising to the top of the twister.
Accordingly to AccuWeather meteorologist Brian Lada, the winds from the tornado were lifting dust and dirt from the field up into the air, gradually climbing higher and higher as the tornado continued to spin. This dust and dirt is why the bottom part of the tornado appears darker than the top half and the top half and the clouds in the sky, said the expert.
Surcel, the music teacher, was not the only one streaming live video of the tornado on Facebook. Another Romanian man, CÄtÄlin IoniÅ£Ä, who was riding in a vehicle near the huge tornado captured similarly breathtaking footage of the storm. His video lasts about three minutes and 20 seconds and within four hours of it being streamed live had racked up nearly 500,000 views.
Several onlookers also captured photos of the monstrous funnel cloud, which prompted drivers to get out of their cars and photograph the behemoth weather phenomenon. According to AccuWeather forecasters, severe weather conditions are expected to continue to impact the region until Thursday, with intermittent periods of thunderstorms and precipitation.
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