Terrifying waterspouts spotted off coast of Florida

National Weather Service service issues warnings to boaters as ‘whirling’ columns of ‘air and water mist’ seen offshore

Several massive waterspouts were spotted off the coast of Florida, with local officials issuing warnings to area boaters.

The spouts were caught on video in Destin, in the northeastern part of the state near the Alabama border, as the area was struck by lightning and storms on Tuesday morning.

A clip posted to Instagram at around 7am local time by @boo_freeman shows the beach in Destin with the sky covered by a huge, dark cloud hanging low on the horizon.

What looked like a tornado connected the water and the cloud. Known as a waterspout, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) states that the phenomenon is a “whirling column of air and water mist”.

Waterspouts in “fair weather” are connected with calmer conditions, while “tornadic” waterspouts take place during major thunderstorms and imitate the characteristics of a tornado, which can be harmful, particularly if they cross over land, according to the agency.

A number of waterspouts were seen in the Florida panhandle on Tuesday morning in Destin and Henderson Beach State Park, according to CBS.

The waterspouts near Destin moved away from the coastline after they had formed and didn’t cross over land.

The National Weather Service for Mobile, Alabama and Pensacola, Florida tweeted shortly after 7am on Tuesday: “Storms off of Destin are producing a large waterspout just offshore. This storm appears to be moving parallel to the coast off of Miramar Beach. Use caution if out boating this morning as other storms could also produce waterspout.”