Tornado rips through sleepy Suffolk village leaving trail of destruction



A freak tornado left a trail of destruction after it ripped through a quiet Suffolk village without warning.

The twister destroyed a 250-year-old forge, wrecked a car, uprooted trees, blew down a chimney, ripped off tiles and tore off roofs from a house and outbuildings.

Power and telephone lines were also brought down as the 120mph wind swept across the outskirts of Great Livermere, near Bury St Edmunds.

Devastated: Brian Hardman, the village blacksmith, by the remains of the Old Forge at Great Livermere in Suffolk after the tornado struck

Incredibly nobody was injured when the tornado struck just before 5pm on Monday, although several people had a lucky escape.

The wind blew up just seconds after village blacksmith Brian Hardman, 56, had been in his forge lighting up his fire to fashion horseshoes.

He said: 'I had just come back into my house over the road to make a cup of tea. I shut the door and then I heard this loud crashing noise. It sounded like a train going past.

'I looked out and saw a few tiles had flown off my roof. Then I looked across at the forge and saw it was in ruins. It was heartbreaking to see.

'I was very lucky because I was standing inside just a few moments earlier and I could easily have been caught up in it.

'The wind just seemed to come from nowhere. It only lasted about 20 seconds or so.

'Before it happened there was a bit of drizzle and it was a bit overcast - but there was nothing to suggest there was going to be a tornado.'

The wind brought down half of the timber-framed forge and most of its roof, wrecking an MG sports car that Mr Hardman had been renovating inside.

The father-of-two's Land Rover Discovery car which was parked next to the forge was written off when it was smashed by rubble and debris.

A 40ft cherry tree and a 30ft apple tree in Mr Hardman's garden were also brought crashing down.

Tony Redman examines the damage caused by the twister which blew through Great Livermere on Monday

Chartered building surveyor Tony Redman, 59, had a six foot tall chimney blown down at his 18th century home The Cottage which is opposite the forge.

Scores of bricks from the chimney smashed through his roof, littering a stairway of his house which was unoccupied at the time.

A slate roof on an extension to the house was also ripped off, along with the roof of a barn and the gable end of a brick and flint outbuilding in the garden.

Swept away: Tony Redman witnessed the twister rip the roof of his house and barn

The tornado left a wake of devastation after it ripped through the quiet Suffolk village

Huge branches were ripped off eight oak trees in the meadow behind the house as the tornado made its way out of the village.

Mr Redman, a non-stipendiary priest, said: 'The wind came from a westerly direction and then crossed this end of the village before disappearing over the fields again.

'We are just very fortunate nobody was hurt - but my cat which was in the house at the time was left a bit traumatised.

'My family have lived here since 1810 and the buildings have stood here without any problem all that time.'



Calm before the storm: Great Livermere village green before the tornado struck

Retired maintenance fitter Bill Dean, 69, said he was watching television in his home when the tornado struck.

He said: 'I heard a roaring sound coming down the chimney and then a crash which was our TV aerial coming down.

'I looked out of the window and there was debris of all shapes and sizes flying past, including a plastic garden table and chairs.

'In a matter of second it was all over - but when I went outside I saw chaos.

'I had lost several roof tiles and the 50ft walnut tree in my garden was split in two, bringing down the power line and my telephone.'

What a mess: The village blacksmith's shop in Great Livermere was also hit by the tornado on Monday

Mr Dean also lost the 20ft top of a sycamore tree in his back garden and had the roofs of three of his wooden sheds blown off.

He said: 'It's fair to say we were scared for our lives. Hopefully it is something you only experience once in a lifetime.

'The incredible thing is that the tornado only hit a small area. The rest of the village was unaffected.'



Mr Dean said his granddaughter Lauren Dean, 13, who lives in the village had a lucky escape as she had been in his garden collecting her bike just five minutes earlier.

Met Office spokesman Barry Gromett said he believed the tornado was caused by a belt of low pressure in East Anglia drawing up warm and humid air from sub-tropical parts of the Atlantic.

He said: 'There was a lot of energy in the atmosphere which led to storms. When you have tall clouds with sufficient up-draught and down-draught, you get these vortices developing.

'Everyone thinks about tornados in America - but the UK actually has more per square kilometre than any other country. They are more common in high summer when you have heat and energy in the atmosphere.