A large and powerful tornado s swept through several villages in the Czech Republic yesterday killing four people and leaving more than 100 others injured.
Thursday night's storm blew the roofs off buildings in the south-eastern Breclav and Hodonin districts, uprooting trees and overturning cars.
Winds of at least 219km/h (136 mph) were recorded and the worst-hit areas were said to look like a war zone.
"It's living hell," said South Moravia regional governor Jan Grolich.
Hail stones the size of tennis balls were reported, and local officials said a string of villages had suffered considerable damage along a 25km (15-mile) stretch of road heading from Breclav to Hodonin, to the north-east.
In the village of Valtice, on the other side of Breclav, Mayor Pavel Trojan said almost every building had been damaged by a bombardment of hail.
The government said around 1,000 homes had been affected and local authorities were working to provide accommodation for people whose roofs had been destroyed.
Czech Republic: Deadly tornado sweeps through villages
Five people are killed and at least 150 injured, with the worst-hit areas looking like a war zone.
www.bbc.com
WOW! Thought tornados were a Western Hemisphere phenomenon.
