‘Tornadoes’ spotted over Peterborough as city braced for thunderstorms

A yellow weather warning is in place across the city for between 11am and 10pm and at just after 3pm, many areas of the city experienced sharp showers. Heavy winds and ‘tornadoes’ have also been spotted in a few areas of the city.

The UK is estimated to experience between 30 and 50 tornadoes a year but they are rarely powerful enough to cause significant damage. They rely on a series of meteorological conditions that come together to form a funnel cloud.

Trevor Robbins-Pratt, from Peterborough Weather Watch, has confirmed that the images sent to the Peterborough Telegraph show well defined funnel clouds, that look close to becoming tornadoes. A funnel cloud officially becomes a tornado at the point it touches the ground.

Charlotte Chestney sent in a photo from Leiston Court in Eye, which shows one of the twisters.

She said: “I saw it spinning. The winds really began to pick up and it became very grey. We came straight home. I know people in Kings Lynn that say they saw it too.”

Christopher Dickinson also sent in a photo of one of the twisters; taken in Elizabeth Court in the city centre.

He said: “There were no high winds when I took the photo but I was shooting from around six miles away. It looks as if it was over towards the Helpston/Stamford/Glinton area.”

The Met Office is predicting rain to last in the city until around 9pm, with the worst expected between 7pm and 8pm, with thunderstorms likely.

For further weather updates, visit the Met Office website.