Possible Tornado Seen Near Camarillo

In a literal twist to the weird Oz-like weather that has afflicted Ventura County recently, the National Weather Service reported a tornado sighting Wednesday morning near Camarillo.

Maybe.

“It was at least a funnel cloud,” said meteorologist Vladimir Ryshko, who along with other federal workers scrambled up to the roof of the agency’s Oxnard office to watch the unusual cloud.

“It may or may not have touched down. According to information we have from the Camarillo Airport, they said it touched down for two minutes and that would make it a tornado. . . . They are paid to watch the airport area all day long so it looks pretty likely it was a tornado,” Ryshko said.

No other weather observers reported that the funnel cloud actually reached the ground--thereby becoming a confirmed tornado. Tower personnel at Camarillo Airport declined comment.

Nevertheless, the Weather Service issued a 19-minute tornado warning for southeast Ventura County and west Los Angeles County at 10:01 a.m. The warning noted a “weak tornado” had been sighted moving northeast at 15 mph over the western Santa Monica Mountains about four miles south of Camarillo.

Tornado warnings are issued to alert people to an existing tornado or one suspected to exist.

No damage was reported from Wednesday’s funnel cloud, although all county fire and police agencies were alerted to the tornado warning.

Dan Price, a groundskeeper at the former Camarillo State Hospital, said he did not see the funnel cloud touch the ground.

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“It looked about as big as a football field,” said Price, who once lived on an Iowa farm. “You could see blue underneath it and you could see that funnel spinning. It lasted a couple of minutes, then sucked back up to the sky.”

Jay Rosenthal, head of the geophysics branch of the Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division at Point Mugu, said he watched the funnel cloud for almost half an hour. But topography made it impossible, he said, to tell whether the cloud touched the ground.

“It ranged from a medium shade gray to pretty black,” Rosenthal said. “The funnel would form, weaken a little and then reintensify.”

If confirmed, the tornado would be only the third confirmed in the county by WeatherData Inc., a private firm that provides forecasts for The Times.

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Tornadoes occurred Nov. 9, 1982, and Dec. 7, 1992. Both were considered “F-zero” tornadoes, the weakest possible variety.

Indeed, Sherwin said that even if unstable cold air, such as that accompanying the recent storm, created Wednesday’s cold-air funnel, any tornado it caused would be weak.

“It’s not like the movie ‘Twister,’ ” he said. “They are forming in the type of environment that is not favorable to causing damage and death.”

Nevertheless, those who saw the cloud weren’t taking any chances.

“I hope it don’t come back,” said Jeff Cinque, who works with Price in Camarillo. “We’re lucky we’ve got basements here and I’ve got keys to get in.”

So just when will authorities know once and for all whether an actual tornado visited the county?

“Probably five years from now when somebody does a master’s thesis,” meteorologist Ryshko said.

Times staff writer Chris Chi contributed to this story.