KOTA KINABALU, June 27 — Weird cloud formations seen in the west coast of Sabah early this morning caused a mild scare among some residents and social media users.

Beaufort district police chief Deputy Superintendent Azmir Abdul Razak said that the clouds, which looked like big plumes, were seen at about 7.30am this morning and brought heavy rain to the district. "It was seen for about an hour, when it was raining heavily,” he said when contacted by the Malay Mail Online adding that the public were curious, but did not panic. "Everyone was more worried about the heavy rain and hoping it would not flood,” he said. Images of the clouds also spread through social media platforms Facebook and Whatsapp, with captions such as — "is the world ending” while others just marvelled at the beauty of the cloud formation. "Bikin takut, tapi cantik,” (translation: scary but beautiful) said one internet user. Sabah meteorological department director Azmi Daud said that the clouds were a squall line of thunderstorms that were moving fast and low within the area. "This is fairly normal during a south westerly monsoon season. The meteorological department has already issued a thunderstorm warning earlier in the morning,” he said. The forecast indicated that thunderstorms activities occurred over the waters off Sabah’s west coast and interior, Labuan and Miri, Sarawak as early as 7am and is expected to continue until late this evening. "This condition may cause strong winds up to 50 kmph and rough seas with wave height up to 3.5 metres (11 feet) and dangerous to small boats,” it said. The squall line is often seen during the Southwest Monsoon season along coastal areas, which develops offshore during the night before sweeping landward in the morning. Squall lines are used to describe a moving line of thunderstorms, which can stretch for hundreds of kilometres and last several hours. They can generate gusty winds and heavy rains, which are more intense and extensive than individual thunderstorms. The clouds were believed to have dissipated by 9am.