Mini tornado sweeps over Banagher

A mini tornado swept over Banagher on Tuesday last into the yard of Liffey Mills and neighbouring Banagher Concrete.

Yard man Eoin Mannion who has been working for Liffey Mills for the past 18 years recounted the shocking events saying: “I was on the loader and the whole place just went absolutely black, real dark and I knew well there was something coming so I had the windows down on the jeep and I just jumped off the loader to close up the windows.

He added; “Next thing I turned around and the whole place was like a big dark cloud. All the dust and the dirt and the sheeting and everything started flying up into the sky.”

Taking to Facebook to warn their followers about the adverse weather conditions, Liffey Mills also shared a video over the tornado in its yard. "Luckily no one was hurt or injured with this huge gale force but beware in these strange weather conditions anything is possible so always beware."

Mr Mannion said that two or three (roof) sheets from Banagher Concrete landed on top of the bins in the yard of Liffey Mills and that two more flew across the road into a car park nearby.

“The whole yard was actually covered in dirt and everything and clay and all the gravel and things that came across from across the road in Banagher Concrete.

Mr Mannion added that it would frighten you to see it if you hadn't seen one before. "Two other guys that work with me were actually below in the corner and one of them could see it coming as well and he actually jumped into the back of his van.”

“We got a serious shower of rain after, that the claps of thunder kept going on and on and on. The rain didn't even clear. The thunder lasted for a good half an hour after, loudest I ever heard before anyway. The lightning was bad as well,” stated Mr Mannion.

“When you haven't seen one before it would really open your eyes now in fairness,” the Tipperary native explained, adding that it was lucky that nothing was damaged in the yard such as cars or jeeps.

Although the yard men at Liffey Mills were expecting the extreme weather conditions, they were still shocked by the sudden severity. “It was just real dead and heavy. There wasn't a breeze at all and next thing the wind just took up all of a sudden,” Mr Mannion concluded.