In the early hours of Wednesday afternoon, a dramatic waterspout (basically a tornado at sea) started making its way towards the port of Naxos, in the Cyclades and hovered around the island for a little while before continuing its journey westward.

While dramatic, the waterspout did not cause any damage to the island or to ships at sea, according to local press.

And while the dark sky may have had an element of the apocalyptic about it, such weather events are not at all uncommon in Greece and generally pose limited danger (unless perhaps one is in a small boat in precisely the wrong place).

SKAI TV’s meteorologist Cristina Souzi told Greece Is: “Waterspouts such as this one are more likely to occur in coastal seas. They are a rather common phenomenon in Greece, as the country possesses a particularly long coastline [of nearly 14,000km], and are unlikely to cause damage. They usually manifest in the middle of the summer or in the autumn, especially off the coasts of northern Crete, Rhodes, and in the Ionian Sea. Their life span can reach up to 15 minutes in the warmest weathers.”

Fortunately the Naxos waterspout remained safely out to sea and delivered quite a show for the people on the island, who rushed on their phones to capture the moment:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CGo10AZJhHn/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

https://www.instagram.com/p/CGnP4orgJ5C/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

https://www.instagram.com/p/CGmj4LsAtXg/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

But from reports on social media, it appears that the residents of Naxos were not the only islanders to witness nature’s intimidating autumnal beauty. Waterspouts were also reported off the coasts of the popular islands of Rhodes and Sanotirini:

Ανεμοστρόβιλος στη Ρόδο ? pic.twitter.com/wOiceSURiQ

— Ποκαχόντας (@yourpocahontass) October 21, 2020

Ανεμοστρόβιλος στη Σαντορίνη …και επίσημα πια θα πεθάνουμε όλοι #thapethanoumeoloi

Φωτό Θεώνη Καφιέρη pic.twitter.com/1YEMrsYTQB

— Ιωσήφ Πέρρος (@Iosifp) October 21, 2020