WHILE the south west of England will be battered by severe storms, Worcester will escape with just wind and light rain, according to weatherman Paul Damari.

"We are just likely to see some rain this morning and it will brighten up this afternoon," said Mr Damari.

Missed

"The wind will also pick up to a gusty to strong north-westerly this afternoon but it is nothing like what they will be having down in the south of England because we have really missed the brunt of the storm."

Mr Damari added that the water levels of the River Severn, which have been high recently because of heavy rain in Wales, are expected to go down following intermittent rain.

The harsh weather is expected to cause flooding and structural damage in parts of southern England with Devon and Cornwall facing the worst of it with winds of up to 90mph.

Yesterday, people watched in amazement as a tornado measuring hundreds of feet moved up the Bristol Channel during a storm resulting in sea spray being lifted 50ft into the air.

Paul Knightley, of the Press Association Weather Centre, said there were some 33 tornados each year in the UK but they usually occurred in the autumn when seawater was warmer.

"It is quite unusual for people to see them, especially at this time of year," he said.