Final Jersey tornado report follows trail of destruction

The experiences of families whose homes were torn apart by Jersey's strongest ever tornado have been documented in a new report.

The tornado of November 2023 "left a community deeply in shock", said the Tornado and Storm Research Organisation (TORRO).

The Site Investigation Report follows an earlier document which outlined the severest damage.

The new report provides detailed analysis of its 8km (8,000m) path.

One islander told investigators: "There was a cracking sound... I felt a gust of air.

"There was a huge bang. The roof lifted off and we could see the sky."

Another witness described the rain as being like "turning on a hundred fire hoses", while many people told of "feeling pressure in their ears".

Meanwhile the noise was described as "like machine-gun fire", "like a roar" and as "three great thumps, one after the other".

Cars were levitated, "concrete lumps" flew, caravans were destroyed - and hail measured 5cm (0.1ft) in diameter, the report said.

During its research TORRO assessed damage caused in Jersey according to the Beaufort wind scale.

The new report - which follows the full path of the tornado via on-site investigation and input from islanders - confirmed a T6 rating.

It said: "Numerous houses were rendered badly damaged or uninhabitable.

"This, the strongest tornado in Jersey, left a community deeply in shock."

Meanwhile, Jersey Electricity reported more than 100 incidents, with about 600 customers left without power.

Investigators said the tornado made landfall at St Clement just before midnight with a track of about 550m (1,804ft).

It added: "It demolished upper floor walls of one property as it hit the beach front and badly damaged many roofs further into St Clement.

As it hit Florence Boot Playing Fields, it reached a strength of T6, said the report.

"Very large wooden beams" from the "badly damaged" Geoff Reed Table Tennis Centre flew about 150m (492ft).

Arriving at the Rue Des Pres trading estate, it "lofted large metal roofing sheets into the air", leaving a damage trail of 1.4km (0.8 miles).

It said a "significant indicator" of the tornado's force was found in its destruction of a single storey property in Boulivot.

The report said a heavy concrete lump was lofted about 35m (115ft) before "penetrating" a second-floor bedroom.

Meanwhile, a car was thrown about 25m (82ft) and at Beauvelande Campsite, a campervan was hurled in the air and a car was lifted in St Catherine's Wood, investigators said.

Roofs were lifted from cottages in Fliquet and, along with debris, "lofted" onto other properties.

The tornado left the island at Fliquet Bay, the report said.

Investigators said of the report, which relied on islanders' accounts, pictures and drone footage: "An enormous debt of thanks is owed to everyone in Jersey for all their help during a very difficult time."

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