'Mini tornado' rips through North Staffordshire as Storm Darragh closes in

Families in one street in Clayton say they are now assessing the damage after the "tornado" hit at around 5pm. Credit: Sherrie Baxter

Residents in North Staffordshire have told how a "mini tornado" ripped through their neighbourhood, as Storm Darragh closes in.

Families in one street in Clayton say they are now assessing the damage after the "tornado" hit at around 5pm.

One person in Clayton Lane said: "A mini tornado just came through Clayton, it ripped our grass up, ripped the roof tiles off our neighbour's roof.

"There's fence panels everywhere, I've never seen anything like it, the sound was deafening.

"We don't even know if our roof is ok yet.

"All the neighbours were in the street assessing the damage. A friend said they could hear the intense sound from far away near Westbury Park - like a bomb going off. It lasted about 15 seconds."

An amber weather warning for “potentially damaging” winds is in place for the west coast of the UK from South Ayrshire in Scotland down to Cornwall, as well as in Northern Ireland.

Meanwhile, the heaviest rainfall is expected to be focused in northern and western parts of the UK, with some hill snow expected in areas above 200m elevation.

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