This is the spectacular moment four waterspouts formed at the same time off the Philippine coast.

Footage shows the quadruple funnels whirling off Bohol province on Thursday, September 7.

Onlooker Luisita Baguhan Johnston said: 'We were watching what would happen because it wasn't just one, but four tornadoes at sea. I didn't know they could form like that. It was very scary. I kept praying they wouldn't cross over onto land.'

The tornadoes lasted for several minutes before dissipating, followed by heavy rainfall, locals said.

Jhomer Eclarino, chief of state weather agency PAGASA's division in the Visayas region, said the phenomenon was caused by a localised thunderstorm.

He added that a thunderstorm with a wide coverage may spawn multiple tornadoes.

The weatherman said hot weather had been baking the area in recent days, increasing water evaporation that led to the thunderstorm.

A similar freak weather phenomenon was seen off the island of Koh Lipe in southern Thailand in November 2018.

Four large cyclones could then be seen twisting down from the sky and swirling into into the ocean, with the rare weather sight stunning holidaymakers in the area.

Two types of tornado form at sea - tornadic waterspouts and fair-weather waterspouts. Tornadic waterspouts form from thunderstorms, just like land tornadoes, while fair-weather waterspouts are typically smaller and less powerful without the need for storms.

Both types of waterspout tornadoes are created when there is a strong difference in air pressure between the surface of the water and the air above it. This difference in pressure creates an updraft, which draws air from the surface of the water into the atmosphere. As the air rises, it cools and condenses, forming a cloud. The cloud can then rotate, forming a waterspout.

It is rare for waterspouts to cause severe damage. However, in August 2023 two tourists were killed and six injured when a waterspout tornado hit their boat on an estuary river in Phetchaburi, southern Thailand.