This is the moment a huge waterspout twists its way towards a beach, narrowly misses an anchored boat and slams into a beachfront cafe before dissipating.

The phenomenon was filmed in the village of Shirokaya Balka near the city of Novorossiysk in the south-western Russian region of Krasnodar Krai on 8th August.

In the dramatic footage, the large waterspout is seen twisting its way towards the coast before narrowly missing an anchored vessel and hitting a dock and small building, sending debris high into the air.

According to the news site Life, the storm left a beachfront cafe without windows and only part of its roof.

Meanwhile, the local authorities said the storm caused severe traffic problems, significant damage to several buildings in the area, and uprooted trees.

Several other twisters have been seen in southern Russia during heavy storms accompanied with strong winds since last week.

According to local media, the storm in Shirokaya Balka was less severe than one that hit the Upper Volga region on 2nd August.

The latest storm was reportedly caused by a cold front moving into the region, experiencing 30 degree Celsius temperatures at the time, forming hybrid and cumulus rainclouds.

The emergency services were mobilised to deal with the upended trees and traffic jams in the area.

Meanwhile, five planes were unable to land at the nearby Sochi International Airport due to the severe weather.

A waterspout is an intense columnar vortex similar to a tornado that occurs over a body of water instead of land. Some are connected to a cumulus congestus cloud, some to a cumuliform cloud and some to a cumulonimbus cloud.

Waterspouts have a five-part cycle starting with the formation of a dark spot on the water surface, then a spiral pattern. This is followed by the formation of a spray ring and then the funnel, before finally disappearing.

They take place over water while tornadoes occur over land. In rare cases, a waterspout will continue moving onshore where it technically becomes a tornado.