Screenshot from a Threads video showing a mini tornado at the Damansara toll plaza, where strong winds appeared to lift the rear end of a vehicle off the ground, yesterday.PETALING JAYA: The mini tornado near the Damansara toll plaza yesterday evening formed amid active thunderstorm clouds, Malaysian meteorological department (MetMalaysia) director-general Hisham Anip said today.
Hisham said tornadoes were rapidly rotating columns of air formed by wind shear and updrafts as thunderstorm clouds developed.
He also said tornadoes could form in unstable, humid atmospheric conditions when winds from different directions interact.
Hisham said tornadoes in Malaysia were relatively small, measuring less than 10m tall and lasting for a short time.
