In Mount Collins, near Alice Springs Australia, it hasn’t rained since April 24th, and this provided the perfect environment for one of the rarest phenomena in nature: fire devils. Also known as firestorms or fire tornadoes, it is when wind causes fire to pull upwards creating a vortex. Australian Filmmaker Chris Tangey happened to be at the right place at the right time with his camera when he captured this whirlwind of fire, ignited by a brush fire. The column danced around for over 40 minutes. Luckily this one did not get out of hand like the fire tornado in 1923, ignited by the Great Kanto earthquake in Tokyo, which grew to the size of a large city and killed 38,000 people in 15 minutes.
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According to Tangey:
“It was like a dance of giants in front of me. It was awe-inspiring. I’ve never seen anything like it… You would have paid $1000 a head if you knew it was about to happen.”
For more examples of fire tornadoes and a simplified explanation of how they are formed, check out the video below.
