Suspected tornado causes destruction in Jersey as Storm Ciarán batters southern coasts

Storm Ciarán has brought gale-force winds to southern parts of the British Isles, with a tornado reportedly causing destruction in Jersey.

A suspected tornado ripped through a residential area on the Channel Island of Jersey overnight as Storm Ciarán arrived over southern parts of the British Isles.

Images of the alleged tornado shared to social media appeared to show rotational winds whipping up debris, with flashes of lightning in the background. Jersey has suffered the worst impacts from Storm Ciarán, feeling the full force of winds as high as 102mph.

Incredible footage from a baby monitor showed the moment a window was blown in in the middle of the night in St Clements. Around 40 people were evacuated from homes due to instances like this and were housed in hotels overnight. Daybreak revealed destruction in several areas, with buildings damaged and trees uprooted.

Elsewhere in the British Isles, conditions have also been extremely windy on the South Coast, with gusts of 77mph on the Isle of Scilly and 74mph at Newquay Airport.

As the centre of Storm Ciarán passed over England, some places saw barometers sinking to their lowest levels ever recorded, reaching 951hPa in Dawlish in Devon, for example.

Hundreds of schools in southern England are closed and many train lines have ground to a halt. Flooding has been reported due to heavy rain in some areas and more than 7,000 people were without power in Cornwall this morning.

The winds remain strong, with amber warnings still in force, but gusts are expected to weaken gradually as the day goes on.