Landspout tornado touches down near Russell, Man.

A landspout tornado touched down briefly nearly Russell, Man., on Saturday afternoon, Environment Canada says.

"While very photogenic, it was not going to be a severe event,"said Natalie Hasell, warning preparedness meteorologist with EnvironmentCanada.

The tornado touched down around 2:20 p.m. and there are no reports of damage.

Hasell explained that landspout tornadoes are different than tornadoes created by the mesocyclone of a thunderstorm and they are usually not very strong.

"You should still be wary of them.If you were in close vicinity, I would still take shelter," she said.

"I would not try to get any closer to it but compared to a severe thunderstorm tornadothese are completely different."

Landspouts are sudden, circulating columns of air that suck up dust. They are considered tornadoes because they make contact with both the clouds and the surface of the ground.

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