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Wicked weather spawns funnel cloud over Disney World

Storms roll through Epcot, other Orlando-area theme parks

ORLANDO, Fla. – A picture captured in Orlando Thursday shows a large, ominous-looking cloud forming over Walt Disney World’s EPCOT park.

The picture was taken near EPCOT by Andrew Klatt, of Timberlake, Ohio.

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The National Weather Service in Melbourne, referencing its close examination of pictures and video taken at EPCOT and around Walt Disney World, confirmed Thursday that a brief funnel cloud developed early in the evening. The NWS said no touchdown was reported.

News 6 meteorologist Jonathan Kegges detailed the weather event, which News 6 originally reported could have possibly been a scud cloud.

“Initially it was difficult to determine if the cloud was rotating from the video and pictures taken at EPCOT. Rotation is the factor that differentiates a funnel cloud from scud,” Kegges said. “Oftentimes, scud clouds resemble funnel clouds or tornadoes. Scud clouds are a type of fractus cloud, which is a jagged cloud that forms in the warm, moist area beneath a thunderstorm updraft.”

Additional video was sent in following initial reports and they showed the cloud rotating, confirming it was a funnel cloud over EPCOT.