Freakish 'firenado' rises out of wildfire in Summit County, Utah [pics]

Incredible.

Firenado #summitfire pic.twitter.com/aCVKJ8pNCe

— Alan (@alanneves777) August 13, 2013

Wow. Look at these pictures from @KSLChopper5 #firenado pic.twitter.com/xnF5np2dVe

— Randall Jeppesen (@RJENEWS) August 13, 2013

What the heck is that thing, exactly?

On KSL at 5, we saw the #Firenado or "Fire Whirl" from the #SummitFire. Here's how fires create their own weather. pic.twitter.com/EqaXaiMLsh

— KSL 5 TV (@KSL5TV) August 14, 2013

From Mother Nature Network:

A fire whirl, also known as a fire tornado or fire devil, is a rare phenomenon in which fire forms a tornado-like vortex of flames. Fire whirls can be formed in one of two ways: when a tornado spins too closely to a forest fire or when a heavy concentration of heat is generated in a small area. Typically, they’re spawned from wildfires. Like tornadoes, fire whirls vary in size and duration; however, they typically last no more than a few minutes.

Whoa. What’s next?

https://twitter.com/TexasAggie05/status/367443051611828224

All joking aside, we hope everyone in Summit County is safe.