A waterspout tornado formed just yards away from docked boats on a beach in the Philippines.

Footage shows panicked fishermen watching the weather phenomenon gain strength and size in Iloilo province on August 4.

Despite forming near the shore, the vortex moved away from the coast and disappeared after almost five minutes.

Fisherman Jec Panganiban said: ‘We were so afraid that our boats would be destroyed. Everyone was scared and praying so that it would not hit us.'

Waterspout tornadoes are intense columns of swirling tornado clouds that form over a body of water. They are most commonly found in subtropical areas and disappear shortly after they come into contact with land.

Scientists believe they are formed when pockets of warm air near the water surface rise suddenly. Cooler air is then sucked into the low-pressure air, which picks up water and rises towards the clouds in a rotating motion.