Update: The New York Times reports that the NWS office in Hanford, California confirmed that officials are on the way to the area near Biola, located just nine mile west of Fresno.
The report noted that the funnel cloud was reported to the NWS by a local resident around 2:12pm local time.
“We can’t officially call it a tornado until we get additional information,” NWS meteorologist Brian Ochs was quoted saying by NYT.
Original Story: Amid the tornado warning for Fresno, California, on Tuesday afternoon, multiple storm chasers reported a twister likely on the ground in Clovis, just north of Fresno, in Fresno County.
Later, local ABC News affiliate confirmed it as a tornado touchdown. Multiple people, meanwhile, reported that there was a massive super cell or a funnel cloud around Fresno which sparked the initial warning.
A photo of the likely twister near Clovis was shared on social media by a storm chaser. Here are they:
The Fresno Bee reported that the Clovis Unified School District in Fresno, located near the area where the tornado was sighted, was briefly shut down.
Tornadoes in California form when strong Pacific storm systems create unstable air and wind shear, especially during winter and spring. Though rare, areas like the Central Valley can occasionally see brief tornadoes when these conditions align.
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