Tornadoes strike Marsala in Sicily, overturning cars and damaging a school

Mixed · 2Two tornadoes were seen at Marsala, a city on the west coast of Sicily, on the morning of Friday 9 October. 1 2 Left · 1The Daily Mirror reported that the two funnels developed over the sea as a thunderstorm covered the area not far from the coast. 1 Right · 1According to the Daily Mail, citing local reports, cars were upturned and schools damaged; footage showed vehicles on their sides or upside down with smashed windows, and one car ended up in a ravine in Petrosino. 2

Right · 1The Italian fire service (Vigili del Fuoco) said crews from Trapani province were working in Marsala, Petrosino and Mazara del Vallo, with reinforcements coming from Palermo and Agrigento. 2 Right · 1The fire service said five teams were deployed and two people were treated by firefighters and paramedics; La Sicilia, cited by the Daily Mail, said several people were treated for injuries that were not life-threatening. 2 Right · 1The Alcide De Gasperi school in Strasatti, Marsala, suffered blown window frames, broken windows and scattered school supplies, and a middle school in Petrosino was also damaged by the wind. 2

Mixed · 2A resident quoted by both outlets said they had never been so afraid of dying, that the phenomenon became four times bigger in two minutes, and that their own home was fine. The Mail's version adds her account of unconfirmed rumours that people had gone missing. 1 2 Right · 1French meteorologist Guillaume Séchet called it a violent tornado with locally significant damage, and enthusiast Federico Pavan said it could be the most intense Sicilian tornado in several decades. 2 Right · 1The Mail placed the event amid wider European storms, saying Italian temperatures had fallen to 5C–8C, with violent wind and rain in Naples and storms in Lazio. 2