A tornado ripped through Whakatane last night, leaving a high school damaged, a trampoline draped across power lines and debris strewn across streets.
The town was woken about 2am by swirling winds, Whakatane police Constable Andrew Marsden said.
Trident High School suffered major damage to its roof and verandah, and several windows were also broken.
The Education Ministry sent a building consultant to the school this morning to assess the damage, but the cost of repairs was not yet known, principal Peter Tootell.
Elsewhere, a power company was called in to remove a trampoline which was picked up and left across power lines.
With thunderstorms presently a frequent occurrence in the area, atmospheric conditions were ripe for smaller tornadoes, MetService forecaster Steve Ready said.
In one hour last night, 14mm of rain fell in the Whakatane area.
Although tornadoes were not common in the area, one ripped through Awakeri in November, pulling up sheds and a glasshouse and damaging two properties.
Two or three smaller tornadoes continued to swirl through the area later the same day.
Three weeks earlier, another tornado tore through Opotiki's Tirohanga Beach, where a vehicle was lifted up and thrown through the beach store.
- DAILY POST (ROTORUA)
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