This Exists: Behold The Awesome Power Of ‘Fire Tornado’ Captured On Video

Just today, National Geographic magazine busted the myth of the oft-rumored “Firecane” that was said to threaten the Gulf region after the oil spill. A firecane is the theoretical event where a hurricane lifts oil out of the gulf as it feeds itself, and then rains flaming oil droplets once it strikes land. It’s a nightmare scenario and it’s a good thing nothing like it can ever happen.

Or can it? Just as NatGeo was dispelling the firecane myth, video surfaced by The Daily Telegraph from a Sao Paulo drought that captured the rare “Fire Tornado” in full, frightening effect. As the video explains, fire tornadoes occur when strong winds whip up bush fires into a tight, traveling spiral.

Click below to watch the Daily Telegraph’s clip of a fire tornado in action:

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