Fire whirls, often referred to as fire tornadoes, are fascinating phenomena ... Another significant study focused on the formation of blue whirls, a specific type of fire whirl characterized ...

video taken by KTLA from the Palisades fires shows fire tornadoes or fire whirls forming. While they may look similar to a tornado associated with a thunderstorm, there is a key difference.

But Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at UCLA, told USA TODAY that it instead appears to be an example of a fire whirl, which is “more akin to a dust devil than a tornado” and is less severe.

Fire whirl, fire devil, fire tornado or even firenado — scientists, firefighters and regular folks use multiple terms to describe similar phenomena, and they don’t always agree on what’s what.

Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. A researcher describes the destructive power of the fires in Los Angeles, particularly the formation of fire ...

A look at fire tornadoes: What is a fire tornado? Fire whirl, fire devil, fire tornado or even firenado — scientists, firefighters and regular folks use multiple terms to describe similar phenom ...

A controlled fire whirl burns during a test in the department of Fire Protection Engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, speaks to a reporter, Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025, in Worcester, Mass. (AP ...

The advisory, which runs into Wednesday, didn’t mention tornadoes, but meteorologist Todd Hall said they’re possible given the extreme conditions. Across the country from the California wildfires, ...

A Jan. 9 Threads post (direct link, archive link) shows what appears to be two tornadoes moving through a burning rural landscape. “Did you know that Cali gets fire tornadoes?!” the post reads.

A look at fire tornadoes: Fire whirl, fire devil, fire tornado or even firenado — scientists, firefighters and regular folks use multiple terms to describe similar phenomena, and they don’t al ...