A thin waterspout tornado formed near a ship during a storm in the Philippines.

Footage shows the faint twister whirling in the Iloilo-Guimaras Strait in Guimaras province during a downpour on November 8.

Onlooker Mareinel Zaldivar said the waterspout tornado formed around 300 metres off the Jordan Wharf and had caused boat trip suspensions due to poor visibility at sea.

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.