Anywhere from four to six funnel clouds formed about 1 1/2 miles off Crystal Cove State Park on Saturday morning, a meteorologist from the National Weather Service said.
Several witnesses reported spotting the funnel clouds from the beach around 10 a.m. on Saturday, said meteorologist Tina Spall, who works for the National Weather Service.
A Newport Beach police helicopter that was in the area confirmed the sightings, she said.
The unusual rotating cloud formations are created by unstable air, Spall said.
“It was a little unusual today because the air wasn’t that unstable,” Spall said. “The storms they were coming from were just good enough to get something going.”
