England is the tornado capital of the world – depending on which statistics you choose to prioritise, that is.
A reminder of England's tornado tendency came today as the town of Widnes in Cheshire, as a mini tornado caused damage and flooding.
It is understood car windows have been sashed and walls have been brought down during the event which took place at 12.25 BST.
Cheshire Police say they have not received reports of any injuries.
Derek Twigg, MP for Halton said: "The damage that occurred to some of my constituents' property in the Camberwell Park Road area this afternoon is shocking.
"I am very relieved and glad that there are no reports of any injuries. It was good to see people pulling together to clean up the damage and I hope the damage is rectified soon.”
Is England really the world's tornado capital?
While the US suffers both a higher frequency of tornados – around 1,200 per year – and those that land are far more deadly, England is home to the highest number of tornados by total area.
Certified by Guinness World Records, England experiences on average 2.2 tornadoes per 10,000 square kilometres per year between 1980 and 2012.
This equates to around one tornado per 4,545 square kilometres. By comparison, on average across the entirety of the US around 1.3 tornados land per 10,000 square kilometres, that's one per 7,693 kilometres.
Tornados are spiralling tunnels of air, where a thunderstorm effectively reaches down to the ground. It is believed wind speeds can reach 300mph in extreme cases.
Despite this, the UK experiences around 30 tornados a year, while the USA has more like 1,200.
According the US' National Centres For Environmental Information, on average 50 people are killed by tornados per year.
Does the UK have its own 'Tornado Alley'?
In 2015, the University of Manchester conducted research that resulted in the production of a heat map showing the parts of the country most likely to be hit by a tornado.
The research found that a spot in the home counties between London and Reading was most at risk, with a six percent chance each year of being hit.
In second with a five percent chance was the area running north from Bristol, through Birmingham and into Manchester.
In third was the area between North East London and Ipswich with four percent.
What was England's biggest Tornado?
The 2005 Birmingham tornado is regarded as one of the nation's largest for 30 years. It chiselled a path 7 Kilometres long through the south side of the city, with its winds reaching between 137 and 186 mph, the Met Office reported.
While no one was killed 19 people were injured and over £40 million in damages were caused.
