By: Ankita Kulkarni
July 24 2023
Old video from U.S. shared as car flipping due to Typhoon Talim in China
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Fact-Check
The Verdict False
The viral clip predates the landfall of Typhoon Talim in China. It was originally shot in Florida, U.S., during a tornado.
Claim ID 33658ad6
Context
Typhoon Talim made landfall in China on June 17 following which authorities issued safety warnings against floods, landslides and have urged residents to stay safe. Amid this, a six-second video recorded from inside a car has gone viral on Twitter, claiming that it shows winds from Typhoon Talim flipping cars in China. The caption reads, "The winds of Typhoon Talim mix with tornado winds that blow up cars in Guangxi Beihai, China." The same video is also being shared by several other users with a similar claim.
However, the video is old and unrelated to Typhoon Talim in China.
In Fact
A reverse image search of a screengrab taken from the viral clip led to a video posted by CNN on April 29, 2023. It is a video report, and we can spot the viral clip at the 00:07 seconds mark, where the anchor says, "A car flipped right into the air, and the national weather service says that tornado was at least an EF1 (EF refers to Enhanced Fujita Scale, used to measure tornado intensity)." The caption reads, "Video shows a car being flipped over by a 'spin up' tornado near Palm Beach Gardens, Florida."
We can spot the exact video on ABC News's official YouTube channel, published on April 30. The description notes, "Video shows the moment several people in Florida encountered a tornado that sent debris flying and flipped a car. No major injuries have been reported." It also shows other visuals from the scene where we can see strong winds, snapping trees, and multiple cars flipping into the air.
Further research also showed us that the viral clip was posted on Twitter by a CBS12 News journalist, Michael Ehrenberg on April 30, and the location is also reported as Florida, U.S.
Washington Post’s report on the incident published on April 30 includes an image showing several cars that were flipped by the tornado piled up at a spot in the residential areas of South Florida. It added that the tornado in the city of Palm Beach Gardens had caused widespread destruction, which resulted in roof, structural, and vehicle damage in the city.
The Verdict
The video is old and was captured in Florida. It is unrelated to the current Typhoon Talim in China. Therefore, we have marked the claim as false.