A rare phenomenon known as a fire whirl, or colloquially a “firenado,” was captured on video spinning over Southeast Oregon amid devastating wildfires. The footage, filmed by a resident in Harney County, shows a towering column of fire and smoke rotating above an open field as a wildfire raged.
Jon Bonk, a fire weather meteorologist with the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center, explained that fire whirls are formed by rising hot air generated by the wildfire. This ascending air begins to spin, drawing flames, burning debris, and smoke into the funnel, a process similar to how dust devils form. He believes the unusually large fire whirl observed was a result of intense heat from the blaze.
While not true tornadoes, these fire whirls can be dangerous. They can grow to hundreds of feet tall and spread embers far ahead of the main fire line, potentially igniting new fires and posing a significant threat to residents and firefighters. Last summer, a wildfire in eastern Utah produced a fire whirl with winds reaching 122 mph, causing damage to a home and outbuildings.
The current wildfires are burning across Oregon and Washington. The five largest fires in Oregon alone have consumed approximately 1.2 million acres. The blaze that produced the fire whirl was ignited by a lightning strike on July 23 and has since spread into Idaho. The fires have also created unhealthy to very unhealthy air quality conditions across the Pacific Northwest due to heavy smoke. Forecasters anticipate some relief as winds are expected to shift the smoke eastward on Thursday night.