Spooky weather stories: skull-shaped hurricanes and walking tornadoes

Halloween may be all about goblins and ghouls, but Mother Nature can bring scares any time of year. Imagine walking through your house on a stormy night.

Sometimes, the most frightening weather even seems to blur the line between science and the supernatural.

Every day, lightning strikes the earth around eight million times. Most flashes are harmless, but for some, they can be deadly. The National Weather Service reports 20 to 30 lightning fatalities a year in the United States.

That’s about a one-in-a-million chance of being struck, so we should be safe in here, right?

If you're not scared yet, check out a skull-shaped hurricane like the one Hurricane Matthew formed in 2016. These shapes are caused by convective clouds and shadows, and Hurricane Milton also formed a spooky face last year.

So, we have millions of lightning strikes daily and hurricanes shaped like skulls—what's next, walking tornadoes?

If you live in Jarrell, Texas, sure! A famous image of a multi-vortex tornado was taken there in 1997, showing several funnel clouds forming the shape of a walking person. Jarrell is best known for this photo, but most tornadoes have multiple vortices.

While most of us will probably never experience these frightening weather events, they serve as a reminder to have a healthy dose of fear and respect for Mother Nature this season.