Storm hits eastern Idaho with tornado warning; gustnado caught on camera
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POCATELLO — East Idaho experienced a severe thunderstorm on Wednesday evening.
At 7:20 p.m., the National Weather Service detected the storm 11 miles south of Pocatello and issued a tornado warning, which expired at 7:45 p.m.
Now a severe thunderstorm watch is in effect until 9 p.m. for Bannock, Bear Lake, Bingham, Bonneville, Caribou, Franklin, Jefferson, Madison, Oneida and Power counties.
A viewer sent EastIdahoNews.com what appeared to be a rotating cloud of dust west of Mud Lake on Wednesday evening. (See the video player above.) The NWS reviewed the video and told EastIdahoNews.com it was not a tornado but a “gustnado,” which the NWS defines as a “small whirlwind which forms as an eddy in thunderstorm outflows” and are not connected to clouds. However, “like dust devils, some stronger gustnadoes can cause damage.”
We’ll update this story if more information becomes available. If you have weather photos or video, send them to news@eastidahonews.com.
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