Tornado tears through Northamptonshire

Watch a report by ITV News Anglia's Dani Crawshaw


A rare tornado has left at trail of destruction in parts of Northampton at the weekend.

The twister caused thousands of pounds of damage as tiles were ripped from roofs, electricity cables were brought down and trampolines were lifted from gardens

Dozens of residents posted videos online as it passed through around 8pm on Saturday 25 July.

Viewer pictures from Harpole in Northants Credit: Abby Ashby

A funnel cloud is a fast rotating column of air which usually extends downwards from a thunderstorm cloud or cumulonimbus.

Some funnel clouds eventually grow sufficiently to touch the ground at which point they are classified as a tornado.

Many eyewitnesses in Northamptonshire claimed that is exactly what they saw and there have been reports of damage on the ground which would suggest a tornado had formed.

Residents clearing up after the damage that was caused to the allotments Credit: ITV News Anglia

Pictures have also emerged of damage caused to allotments in the village of Moulton - north of Northampton.

Moulton lies north of Northampton Credit: ITV News Anglia

Jan Jensen from Moulton Allotments gave her reaction to the trail of devastation caused by the tornado:

The Met Office says that in a typical year, the UK sees around 30-35 tornadoes though it is very rare that are they strong enough to cause any significant damage.

If a funnel cloud does make contact with the ground and produce a tornado, very strong winds can be expected in the immediate vicinity of the vortex potentially causing severe damage.