Two tornadoes strike central and eastern China killing 12 people and injuring 400 as 160mph winds leave trail of destruction
- Wind speeds reached 160 miles per hour in Wuhan, now known for links to the coronavirus outbreak in 2019
- Around 26,000 homes were left without power as winds uprooted homes, trees and electricity pylons
- In Suzhou, near Shanghai, another tornado touched down, killing four and leaving one person missing
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Two tornadoes that struck central and eastern China have killed at least 12 people and injured more than 400, leaving a trail of destruction behind.
Wind speeds reached 160 miles per hour in the central city of Wuhan, now known for its links to the coronavirus outbreak in 2019, on Friday evening.
Eight people were killed and more than 280 were injured.
Vehicles were crushed by falling objects, trees uprooted, buildings partially destroyed and electricity pylons felled
Authorities said that 26,000 homes were left without power as the violent winds uprooted trees and electricity pylons, destroyed 30 homes and threw debris onto vehicles, crushing them after touching down at 8:40pm (1:40 BST) on Friday.
The tornado also damaged two construction cranes, one of which toppled onto the site below, causing significant damage.
Local media put economic losses at 37 million yuan (£4 million).
Elsewhere in the country, in Suzhou, near Shanghai, another tornado touched down on Friday evening at 7pm (12pm BST), hitting wind speeds of 200 kilometres per hour (124 miles per hour).
Four people were killed and one person is still missing, according to local authorities.
Images show the devastation left behind, and also capture rescuers searching through building debris in Wuhan on Friday night, and workers clearing debris at a destroyed factory in Shengze
A factory in Shengze was completely destroyed by the tornado, which touched down on Friday evening
Workers returned to the scene after the danger had passed to try and minimise the damage and begin a cleanup operation
The tornado also damaged two construction cranes, one of which toppled onto the site below, causing significant damage
Buildings and vehicles were destroyed by the strong winds, which threw debris into the air and landing on structures below
Images show the devastation left behind, and also capture rescuers searching through building debris in Wuhan on Friday night, and workers clearing debris at a destroyed factory in Shengze.
Tornados are relatively common in the Jiangsu Province, in the south east of China with around seven to eight occurring each year on average in that part of the country.
Images show the devastation left behind, and also capture rescuers searching through building debris in Wuhan on Friday
The damage caused in extensive, with trees uprooted and some buildings completely destroyed
Thousands of people were left without power to their homes after the violent winds felled electricity pylons
Vehicles were left destroyed after the tornadoes hit two parts of the country on Friday
Wind speeds reached 160 miles per hour in Wuhan, now known for its links to the coronavirus outbreak in 2019
Earlier this month, a violent windstorm resulted in the deaths of 11 people in Nantong, a town of 8 million people on the north bank of the Yangtze River, and close to Shanghai.
In general, they tornadoes across the country as a whole are rare.
In July 2019, a tornado killed six people in the north-eastern Liaoning province, and another tornado the following month killed eight on the southern resort island of Hainan.
In 2016, a tornado and accompanying hailstorm killed 98 people in the eastern Jiangsu province.