A tornado has singled out a trucking company near Waitara in Taranaki, tipping over two five tonne trailers, ripping off roofing iron and then disappearing.
JD Hickman's Taranaki regional manager Blair Duffy said tarpaulins on the trailers had acted like sails but the tornado only caused cosmetic damage.
"It's no way near to what the people of Oakura had to put up with," Mr Duffy said.
He said the tornado caused chaos for 15 - 20 seconds and then disappeared.
"I don't know what we did wrong, I don't know why we got picked out," he said.
He said no one was injured during the tornado.
"It's a hassle, as opposed to a catastrophe," Mr Duffy said.
Taranaki Regional Council spokesman Peter Ledingham said the damage was isolated to JD Hickman's yard.
He said a Civil Defence officer had visited the site.
"But compared to what we've had before, it's pretty minor," Mr Ledingham said.
He said there were no other reports of damage.
Several people had called the Taranaki Daily News to report seeing the twister make its way inland from the sea.
One woman said the tornado picked up what looked like a car shed and spun it high in the air.
"It was the scariest thing I've ever seen, I didn't know if I should run or try to find somewhere to hide," she said.
New Plymouth city and surrounding towns were hit by a swarm of destructive twisters a few weeks ago.
Oakura, southwest of New Plymouth, was the worst hit, with houses wrecked, the electricity network partially disabled and cars extensively damaged by debris.
- With NZPA
