Indonesia Witnesses First Tornado in Rancaekek, Beware for More

Researchers from the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) have initiated a discourse on the emergence of tornadoes in Indonesia. Climate expert Erma Yulihastin from BRIN referred to the strong winds in Rancaekek, Bandung, West Java, on Feb 21 as the first tornado in Indonesia. "The structure of the Rancaekek tornado in Indonesia, compared to tornadoes commonly occurring in the northern hemisphere, bears a 99.99 percent similarity to those in the United States," she stated via her X account on Feb 22.

Erma mentioned that the BRIN team will promptly investigate and reconstruct the Rancaekek tornado phenomenon. She claimed that this extreme event had been predicted by the Mid-Term Seasonal Climate Study of the Indonesian Region (Kamajaya), a computer-based climate prediction system owned by BRIN. Erma asserted that the damaging winds in Rancaekek closely resemble a tornado due to their stronger wind force and wider impact radius.

In contrast to Erma, the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) classified the Rancaekek phenomenon as a whirlwind. According to BMKG, the whirlwind occurred around 15:30 - 16:00 Western Indonesia Time, causing the effects of strong winds in the Jatinangor and Sumedang regions at a speed of 36.8 kilometers per hour. "Essentially, whirlwinds and tornadoes refer to natural phenomena with some visual similarities, which are strong, dangerous and potentially damaging swirling winds," Guswanto, Deputy of Meteorology at BMKG, said on Feb 22.