Friday's unusual weather event in Ballyduff was a mini-tornado

The people of Ballyduff are counting the cost of damage caused by a mini-tornado which struck the village last Friday.

A thunderstorm just before 10am, followed by lightning strikes and extremely strong winds from the North West, are believed to have caused this rare weather event.

The tornado caused widespread damage in the village, including broken windows in a local supermarket, slates blown off the church roof, fallen trees and damage to cars and out-houses.

Here in Ireland, tornadoes usually happen out at sea, but about ten times per year on average, they can strike on land.

Alan O'Reilly of Carlow Weather says winds from a mini tornado can cause quite a lot of damage:

Photograph by Sharon McNama