‘Scary looking cloud’ seen over Cheat Lake was not severe weather

CHEAT LAKE, W.Va. (WBOY) — After months of almost no rain, West Virginia has gotten some severe weather this week, including a showy severe storm that spanned the whole north central region on Tuesday and a tornado that touched down in West Virginia’s higher elevations on Wednesday .

However, there were also a few “scary looking clouds”, or SLCs, that were harmless. A cloud that appeared funnel-esque was spotted and photographed over Cheat Lake Wednesday evening, not long after the tornado touched down in Hillsboro, Pocahontas County, but according to the StormTracker 12 weather team, it was just a scud cloud.

Scud clouds are often mistaken for funnel clouds or tornados because they can get very close to the ground and often twist slowly. But according to the National Weather Service , scud clouds don’t have rotation like a funnel or tornado; they can develop in extreme humidity when humid air evaporates before reaching the main cloud.

Scud clouds can be differentiated from funnel clouds by their raggedness and appearance of being “wind-torn,” according to the National Weather Service . A funnel cloud will appear much smoother with a much quicker rotation.

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