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From: Olli Haukkovaara (olli.haukkovaara{at}pp.nic.fi)
Date: Sun Oct 27 2002 - 16:29:20 EST
>Saturday, 26 October, 2002, 14:03 GMT 15:03 UK , BBC News:
>
>Mini tornado hits town
>
>Met Office has issued a severe weather warning
>A freak whirlwind has damaged more than a hundred buildings in the
>Hampshire town of Portchester, as the rest of the UK braces for gales.
>The mini tornado ripped roofs off garages, flattened garden walls and
>stripped tiles off the top of many homes, a fire brigade spokesman said.
>The incident at 1530 BST on Friday came as parts of the UK were gearing up
>for driving rain and storm force winds this weekend.
>Flood information
>Call Floodline on 0845 988 1188
>An entire garage was lifted off the ground for a few moments during the
>brief storm, according to Hampshire Fire Service.
>Assistant divisional officer Roger Cole said: "It certainly was a very
>strong wind so I believe it was a mini tornado that went through the upper
>reaches of Portchester.
>"Occasionally you will see a tornado spring up around here but not very
>often and you could never tell where one is going to happen next.
>"Some of these winds even picked up a garage and put it down on its
>foundations again, moving it along an inch."
>Elsewhere, weather experts are expecting gales of up to 80mph to sweep
>across southern England, Wales and Northern Ireland overnight on Saturday.
>The BBC Weather Centre said it was expecting prolonged rain in central and
>northern areas, with the south suffering from heavy, squally showers.
>The far north will probably stay largely dry.
>Some of winds could be strong enough to cause structural damage to
>buildings or blow down trees.
>Higher ground
>A stormy day is expected on Sunday with heavy spells of rain and damaging
>winds, especially across central and southern England.
>Snow is forecast across higher ground in Scotland ahead of the predicted rain.
>The bad weather is being caused by an intense depression crossing the north
>of England, generating rain, as well as high winds on its southern and
>western flanks.
>A stricken Russian freighter had to be escorted by a rescue helicopter and
>two lifeboats as it struggled to port in Torbay off the south coast.
>The Cypriot-registered Bothnia Stone had been listing about 20 degrees in
>the poor weather and had had to jettison 1,500 cubic metres of timber.
>Mayday call
>Roger Brimacombe, watch manager at Brixham Coastguard, said: "The French
>Coastguard are warning shipping of the dangers posed by the timber, and our
>colleagues in Falmouth Coastguard are also making similar warning
>broadcasts in their area."
>The ship had issued a mayday call at 2150 BST on Friday, saying the ship's
>engines had stopped after being flooded with sea water 25 miles south of
>Start Point, Devon.
>South-westerly winds were force nine, making the sea extremely rough with a
>forecast for high winds throughout the rest of the weekend.
>Strong winds also forced the cancellation of a passenger ferry service from
>Harwich, Essex, to the Hook of Holland on Saturday morning.
>The BBC weather centre said the strongest of the winds should not persist
>into Monday, but debris could make travel difficult.
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