This is the terrifying moment twin waterspout tornadoes tore along the coast of Indonesia on Tuesday.

The pair of vortexes sparked alarm among residents as they whirled off Bandengan Beach in Jepara Regency, Central Java, on January 16.

Footage shows the twisters descending from black storm clouds and touching down at sea.

Disaster officials said the waterspout tornadoes were spotted around two miles offshore.

Arwin Noor Isdiyanto of the Jepara Regency Regional Disaster Management Agency said: 'This phenomenon occurred on Tuesday. We confirmed there is no significant impact on settlements near the coast.'

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.