KUNA, Idaho — A firenado is a rotating column of hot air, gases and flames that can develop during an intense fire.
They are also commonly called fire whirls or fire devils. Despite the nickname “firenado,” most are more similar to whirlwinds than traditional tornadoes produced by thunderstorms.
How do fire whirls form?
According to the Library of Congress, superheated air above a fire can rise rapidly in columns or plumes. As that air rises, it can begin rotating, drawing in more air and pulling flames upward into a tight spiral.
Most fire whirls remain relatively small, but some can grow to the size of a small tornado.
Strong winds and extreme fire behavior can help create conditions for larger and more dangerous fire whirls, posing an additional hazard to firefighters working nearby.
In rare cases, wildfires can produce tornado-strength rotating columns that behave more like conventional tornadoes.
In 2020, the National Weather Service in Reno issued what it called the first-ever Fire Tornado Warning as the Loyalton Fire burned in Northern California.
