Tornado leaves trail of destruction as it tears through people's homes and snaps trees 'like twigs'
A tornado has left a trail of destruction after snapping trees and damaging homes as it tore through a British city.
A tornado has left a trail of destruction after snapping trees and damaging homes as it tore through a British city.
The vortex touched down in the Finham area of Coventry on Tuesday evening as high winds and storms battered the area.
Terrified residents said the twister was like a bomb going off as it demolished trees that had been standing for decades, ripped off roof tiles and toppled scaffolding.
One tree, estimated to be about 100ft (30m) tall, fell into four gardens in one street while others were snapped in two like twigs by the tornado.
Other locals, who said it sounded like a train coming down their normally quiet residential streets, had fence panels torn apart and bricks rain down on them as they were pulled apart by the force of the winds.
Today homeowners are counting the cost and cleaning up after the extreme weather caused thousands of pounds of damage to their property.
Were YOU caught in the tornado? Email matthew.lodge@mailonline.co.uk
The tornado left a trail of destruction as it tore through Coventry last night, with this tree being torn down by the high winds
The extreme weather also ripped down fence panels after the vortex touched down at around 6.30pm
These roof tiles were ripped off the top of one residential home in the area, turning them into potentially deadly flying debris
Neil McCutchion stands outside one home that was hit by the tornado, which tore apart the scaffolding surrounding the building
Kay Cooke, who was in her home when the twister touched down at around 6.30pm, said: I thought the conservatory roof was going to come in and the chairs outside were going everywhere.
It was pretty much over within a few minutes and we went to go outside to see what happened but you still couldnt even open the front door because of the wind.
I heard crashing and everything and thought what is going on? as the bricks came down.
Im insured but I think Ill still have to pay around £300 I imagine. It lasted about five to ten minutes and it was just out of the blue, completely unexpected.
Another resident Derek Foster, 66, added: It sounded like a bomb going off, I couldnt figure out what it was at first.
The trees were being shaken by the wind in the way Ive never seen before, it must have caused thousands of pounds worth of damage to peoples roofs.
Several small trees were snapped like twigs while a massive one came down further along the street.
Neil McCutchion said huge planks from his scaffolding came off his home on Beanfield Avenue during the freak weather.
The extreme weather is believed to have caused thousands of pounds of damage, with the clean-up continuing this morning
The high winds blew down these fencing panels, along with a light and other garden furniture in a matter of seconds
Kay Cooke picks up fallen roof tiles which were ripped from her home and flung into the garden by the vortex
One tree which is believed to have been standing for more than 100 years was torn from the ground, while others were snapped like twigs, witnesses say
He added: There was a massive wind for about five minutes. All the scaffolding panels just came down.
Two doors down a tree came down and knocked a fence over. I was washing up in the back and I noticed the trees starting to sway a bit.
And then they were bending virtually either way and thats when we noticed the planks were flying off the scaffolding.
David Powers, who lives in the area, told the BBC: Ive never heard anything like it - it was very dramatic.
At first I thought it might be thunder but it sounded more like a big train coming. It took all the bins - it didnt just blow them over, it threw them into the road.
The large tree fell in the garden of Curtis Carvells house, leaving behind a massive hole.
He said: The tree has gone across about four gardens. Its not every day you have a tree fall over - its probably been there for 200 years.
Marian Allder added: About 10 ridge tiles came off our roof. It was definitely a mini-tornado - it was terrifying.
