Waterspout off Singapore coast
© Yik Lim
A large water spout was spotted off Singapore's East Coast on Sunday morning (Jun 18).

Mediacorp news hotline caller Yik Lim, who shared a photo of the water spout, said it appeared "only briefly, but it was quite a huge one". He and his wife saw it at about 9.15am from their condominium in Marine Parade, before morning showers.

Rudi, another caller told Channel NewsAsia he could see the water spout from the DBS Asia Hub at Changi Business Park.

A water spout is a weather phenomenon usually observed during intense weather conditions associated with thunderstorms, the National Environment Agency (NEA) said on its website.


"Due to the lower pressure conditions under the clouds in such conditions, one or two columns of water can be sucked towards the base of the clouds, giving the traditional picture of a funnel," NEA said. "While the thin column or funnel appears to be sucking water up, it is actually water droplets in a rotating vortex of air. As the air rotates and rises, the humid air cools and vapour condenses, making the whirling mass visible."

It added that water spouts can occur at any time of the year, but are more likely between March and October when intense thunderstorm formations are highly possible.