A small but severe tornado hit a residential area of north-west London on Thursday, injuring six people, ripping roofs off homes and tearing down walls.
Television footage showed a trail of destruction in Kensal Rise, with trees uprooted and cars damaged by falling debris. Tornadoes are very rare in British cities.
Local resident Daniel Bidgood was in his house when the tornado, which he said was about 20m, smashed his windows.
”It was very large and certainly very powerful,” he told BBC television. ”You could see it ripping up heavy chunks of mortar and smashing it into cars.”
One man in his fifties was taken to hospital with head injuries. Five other adults were treated for shock and minor injuries after the tornado struck at around 11am GMT.
About 100 houses were damaged, a fire brigade spokesperson said. Eleven fire engines and about 50 firefighters were sent to the scene and cordoned off the area.
The London tornado was rated at T4 on a scale of 0 to 10. This means winds were moving at between 185kph to 219kph, rating the tornado as severe, said a spokesperson for the Meteorological Office (Met Office).
Britain experiences between 30 and 40 tornadoes in an average year, he said, but most are weak and they very rarely hit built-up areas. In July 2005, a tornado in Birmingham, central England, damaged dozens of homes.
The cost in London could run into millions of pounds. Houses in the area cost an average £550 000 , a local estate agent said.
Tornadoes are a vortex of swirling air caused by a build-up of heavy thunder clouds. The Met Office spokesperson said it was impossible to tell if global warming had a role to play in the London tornado.
The Met Office issued severe weather warnings for southern England, with heavy rains and winds after the warmest autumn in the last 347 years. — Reuters
A small tornado hit a residential street in north London, injuring six people and damaging homes and vehicles, police and emergency services said on Thursday.
The tornado struck the Kensall Rise area of north-west London shortly after 11am local time and tore roofs off several houses and demolished sections of walls, sending tiles, bricks and furniture flying through the streets.
Live television showed a trail of destruction with trees uprooted and cars damaged by falling debris.
Tornados, which are extremely destructive, are very rare in Britain.
Local resident James Miles said he was standing outside talking to a friend when there was a flash of lightning and then a big bang followed by rain.
”This horrendous tornado had just shot right through,” he told Sky News. ”A lot of people are shaken up because it’s not the sort of thing that happens in central London … I saw it coming. It was grey with lots of debris spinning around.”
One man in his fifties was taken to hospital with head injuries, while five other adults were treated for minor injuries. — Reuters