Did a tornado touch down on Tuesday, and how often does eastern Idaho get tornado warnings?

POCATELLO — A tornado informing was issued on Tuesday by nan National Weather Service successful Pocatello — but did 1 ever touch down?

The informing successful eastbound Idaho lasted for 1 hour, from 2 to 3 p.m., and affected Jefferson, Butte, Bonneville and Bingham counties. The Idaho National Laboratory area was a concern. 

NWS meteorologist Kurt Buffalo told EastIdahoNews.com that nan agency ne'er received immoderate confirmation of 1 that really touched down. 

However, nan radar information supported nan improvement of a tornado, arsenic good arsenic what group who were adjacent to nan large wind saw. 

“They were seeing what we telephone a ‘wall cloud’ … and past we besides had immoderate reports of imaginable chimney clouds developing,” Buffalo said. 

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A wall unreality tin rotate, but not each do. Rotating wall clouds usually create earlier beardown aliases convulsive tornadoes, according to a glossary from NWS. 

“A chimney unreality is fundamentally nan commencement of a tornado. So it’s nan portion that is extending downward from nan cloud, and it’s rotating, but it ne'er extends downward acold capable to really travel successful interaction pinch nan ground,” Buffalo explained. 

So, what’s nan quality betwixt a tornado informing and a tornado watch?

Buffalo said a tornado informing is erstwhile they spot indications either connected radar aliases reports from group connected nan section that a tornado is imminent aliases apt to develop. 

“There’s a precocious threat. We are seeing capable that location is simply a precocious threat for a tornado to develop. A informing is erstwhile we are really seeing a thunderstorm that is showing characteristics that could nutrient a tornado very soon,” he said. 

On Tuesday, respective terrible thunderstorm warnings were issued, producing chiefly hail, immoderate nan size of astir a quarter, and beardown upwind gusts of astir 60 miles an hour. 

“When 1 is issued, conscionable caput indoors and return screen successful an interior room,” Buffalo said. 

He added that Tuesday was nan first tornado informing issued this twelvemonth for nan region. 

“We usually do rumor connected average, I’d say, 2 to 4 per twelvemonth for eastbound Idaho,” he said. 

As for tornado watches, they are typically issued a fewer hours up of clip but are rare.

“That’s saying that conditions are favorable for that large wind to create to perchance nutrient tornados. It’s benignant of a heads up,” he said. “We virtually ne'er spot tornado watches here.”

The past tornado touchdown successful eastbound Idaho was adjacent Grace past twelvemonth connected June 23. It was successful an unfastened field, and location was nary damage, Buffalo told EastIdahoNews.com.

Courtesy Stephanie and Chase Howell