In the eye of the storm: dramatic video of freak tornado in New Zealand
Published on Dec 6, 2012 by telegraphtv
Footage filmed by a resident of the Hobsonville area of Auckland shows the trees bending under the pressure of the wind, and debris flying through the air at high speed.
Footage filmed by a resident in the Hobsonville district of Auckland showed palm trees swaying violently as the tornado passed nearby.
Three people were killed and several injured after the storm, described by witnesses as a "mini tornado", hit New Zealand's largest city, toppling trees and ripping debris from a construction site.
The tornado, driven by a powerful storm cell, tore concrete slabs from a building site and dropped them onto a truck, killing two people inside, a fire services spokesman said.
Details on the third death were not immediately available. At least seven people injured in the storm were sent to hospital.
One woman caught up in the chaos described the moment her was nearly overturned by the high speed winds.
"The car started to tilt and started to lift. The wind was just going nuts around us, trees were flying at us, bottles were flying at us," she said.
Military personnel were going from door to door in the area to check if more people were trapped and authorities warned of more severe weather to come.
Philip Duncan from WeatherWatch.co.nz updates on three people have been killed after severe weather - including a series of tornadoes - hit Auckland this afternoon. Police sources have confirmed that three have died in the west Auckland storm, which struck shortly after noon.
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