The Met Office has responded after a ‘tornado’ reportedly caused damage to trees and a telegraph pole in Venn Ottery and Tipton St John.

The Tornado and Storm Research Organisation (TORRO) says the villages were struck by a ‘tornado’ on the evening of Saturday, December 30, but the Met Office has not seen photographic evidence of a rotating funnel of air touching the ground to verify this.

In a post on social media platform X on Sunday, a TORRO spokesperson said: “Whilst the maximum intensity is still being assessed, TORRO can confirm based on a site investigation that Venn Ottery and Tipton St John were hit by a tornado yesterday afternoon.”

Strong winds caused a 150-year-old oak tree to “split in half” and damage a telegraph pole in Tipton St John, while there were further reports of damage to trees, roofs and fencing in the area.

Because tornadoes in the UK are far less severe than those seen across the Atlantic in the United States, there is no warning or tracking system in place.

A spokesperson for the Exeter-based Met Office said: “In a typical year, the UK sees around 30 to 35 tornadoes, although the number can vary significantly from year to year.

“Tornadoes in the UK are usually short-lived (just a few minutes), small, isolated, features and it is very rare that are they strong enough to cause any significant damage.”

The spokesperson added: “If a rotating column of air does not reach the ground it is a funnel cloud.

“At the point a funnel cloud reaches the earth's surface it becomes a tornado, or if it reaches a body of water it becomes a waterspout.

“The UK has the highest frequency of reported tornadoes per unit area in the world, although they are nowhere near as intense as those reported in the USA, and therefore we have no tornado warning system and are unable to track them.”

Police believe a “localised tornado” caused damage to homes in Greater Manchester on Wednesday, December 27 during Storm Gerrit.