Glasshouse, window and trees hit by a ‘tornado’
An Aongatete woman has been left with a shattered glasshouse and broken kitchen window after a small “tornado” hit her property.
It was just before 11am yesterday when Karyn Taylor’s 16-year-old daughter Gina looked out the window and noticed “leaves swirling above the trees”.
“We saw a tornado and just ran into the bedroom and got down on the ground away from the window,” Taylor said.
“Everything was just swirling around.”
Taylor said it was “really noisy” and the house felt “a bit shaky”, because it was on piles.
However, it was all over in about 10 seconds, she said.
Assessing the damage, Taylor said the kitchen window had been ripped out, the glasshouse had smashed and trees had fallen.
“There is glass all across the property now.”
Taylor said she and her daughter were “a bit shaken” but overall thankful to be safe.
She warned others to keep safe and avoid windows if they faced a similar situation.
Meanwhile, a severe thunderstorm watch was issued for the Bay of Plenty yesterday afternoon, with the possibility of rain, large hail, and strong winds hitting the region.
There was also a large slip on State Highway 29 on Mclaren Falls Rd.
In a media statement, the Bay of Plenty Regional Council said trees blocked the southbound lane.
Metservice said “humid and unstable” conditions were expected to bring thunderstorms to many areas of the North Island, producing localised heavy rain and hail.
In Rotorua, Waikato and Coromandel there was a moderate risk some thunderstorms could become severe, Metservice said. “Thunderstorms could bring large hail greater than 20mm in diameter, strong winds gusting greater than 110 km/h, and even the risk of a small tornado.”