Tornado tears up LINCOLNSHIRE as Britain braced for summer of terror twisters

THERE are fears Britain could be gripped in a tornado storm this summer after shocking scenes of a twister sweeping through the Lincolnshire countryside.

Residents of the east Midlands county were shocked to see the weather phenomenon tearing across the skyline. 

The spiralling column of wind swept across field and roads, picking up objects and spitting them back out. 

Despite the dramatic spectacle, it is not thought to have injured anyone or caused any major damage.

But onlookers rushed to capture the freak of nature on their smartphones and it whizzed past.

The blustery event, stretching hundreds of feet into the sky, was first spotted in Spalding. 

But it could be a regular occurrence on British shores, after officials predicted the UK could be the twister capital of the world. 

London and Reading have a six per cent chance of being hit by a tornado this summer, while Bristol, Birmingham and Ipswich have a three per cent chance. 

Britain is hit by roughly 34 twisters every year, and form when cold air collides during a storm.

Scientist Kelsey Mulder said: "People typically think of the US as a centre of tornadoes.

"But when you think of how huge the US is, there is only a small region which is hit by tornadoes."

Past tornados have wreaked havoc on British soil, with 19 people injured and £140m worth of damages caused when one struck Birmingham in 2005. 

The following year, a twister racked up a £10m bill of destruction when it swept through Kensal Green. 

Britain's peak tornado season is from May to October, with the highest recorded speed 157mph. 

They typically last a few hours and are a quarter of a miles across.