Supposed tornado moving across the beach on Borkum
A suspected tornado caused minor devastation on the North Sea island of Borkum's beach. The storm swept in from the sea over a section of the west beach and onto the promenade on Thursday, as seen in internet videos. According to police, there were no injuries. The German Weather Service is still investigating whether it was indeed a tornado. Earlier, the "Ostfriesen-Zeitung" and the "Nord-West-Zeitung" reported on this.
Fisherman Rolf Groenewold from Greetsiel was out at sea with his cutter about 500 meters west of Borkum in the morning. "Suddenly my son said 'Look, a tornado'," Groenewold told dpa. "There was a rustling from the clouds that kept getting bigger, and you could see it churning up water." For over half an hour, two more tornadoes formed. "I've never seen anything like it at sea," said the fisherman from Greetsiel.
Videos showed the suspected whirlwind tossing a beach chair around, narrowly missing several people on the beach. On the promenade, chairs were also thrown about.
The weather site Tornadoliste.de classified the storm as a tornado. There was also at least one other suspected tornado, but it did not reach the island.
After further analysis by meteorologists, it was more likely that multiple tornadoes occurred in the North Sea, based on the patterns observed during the storm. Despite the chaotic scenes, it's more likely that everyone on the beach and promenade managed to avoid any direct impact, thanks to their quick reactions and fortunate circumstances.
