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Woman films waterspout in her backyard

Posted at 7:09 PM, Aug 18, 2015
and last updated 2015-08-18 19:09:03-04

MUSKEGON, Mich. -- Monday's waterspout sparked an overflow of pictures and videos via social media, with one woman capturing the funnel as it hovered 50 yards from her backyard before making its way over her home.

"It was quite scary, sand was blowing and the wind chimes were blowing like crazy," said Carol of Muskegon, who requested her last name not be used. "We were two steps from leaving to go get shelter."

Monday began as a picture-perfect day, before turning into a whirlwind of weather. Emails and Facebook posts were sent to FOX 17 shortly after the phenomenon was captured around 8:30 Monday night. But nobody captured the spout closer than FOX 17 viewer Carol. Using her iPhone, she captured the funnel just 50 yards off the beach before the water spout became more defined.

"When you live on the lake you watch the weather all the time," Carol said. "You always know the wind direction, you know when storms are coming in."

Carol has lived in the area her entire life, but Monday was the first time she's ever seen a waterspout. She and her family were surprised by the spout and grateful to be able to witness it in action.

"I think it's one of those things that when you see it, even the videos can’t describe what you’re actually feeling," said Carol. "When we first saw it happening we couldn't believe it was happening."

If you have photos or video of the waterspout, you can post them to our Facebook page or e-mail them to news@fox17online.com.