Severe storms swept through the Washington, DC, metropolitan area on Tuesday, spurred on by the hot, humid weather typical of July in the region. While sometimes it can cook up dangerous tornadoes, meteorologists around the nation’s capital reassured residents that the day's sighting of a funnel cloud was “harmless.”
Photos posted on social media showed a wispy, winding cone of cloud extending from the bottom of the mighty storm clouds overhead. Many users tagged local weather stations with alarmed questions about the sighting.
“WOW! Funnel cloud over the US Capitol,” meteorologist Matthew Cappucci tweeted. “Rest assured this is NOT tornadic - just a happy accident.”
One social media user joked the funnel cloud was a “Scud bomb for sure,” alluding to the Soviet-built ballistic missile used against US forces by Iraq during the Gulf War.