'You certainly don't see this every day': Ultra-rare backward-spinning tornado formed over Oklahoma

An ultra-rare backward-spinning tornado was spawned Tuesday (April 30) from a powerful supercell thunderstorm that formed over the Oklahoma-Texas border.

This backward tornado burst to life in the wake of another odd twister, which was unusual in that it looped back over its own path, CNN reported. Tornadoes tend to travel from west to east, because the prevailing winds in the U.S. travel in that direction and thus push storm systems that way. However, tornadoes can sometimes turn back on themselves as they lose strength; in this case, the tornado completed a full loop over its original path before dying out. 

This looping tornado had formed north of Loveland, Oklahoma, around 10 p.m. local time. It Traveled east before heading north, west and then east again, over the same area it had already hit.

"You certainly don't see this every day," Rick Smith, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service (NWS) in Norman, Oklahoma, told CNN.

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As the looping tornado died down, the backward-spinning twister appeared a few miles southeast of Loveland, just before 10:30 p.m. Smith told CNN that both tornadoes were likely active for a brief period. 

A weather service warning called the tornado "large and extremely dangerous" and noted that it was "nearly stationary or moving very slowly south." It warned people located in Loveland, Grandfield and Devol that "This is a PARTICULARLY DANGEROUS SITUATION. TAKE COVER NOW!"