A devastating tornado ripped through the city of Virginia Beach, Virginia, on Sunday afternoon and left a trail of destruction.
Mounds of debris were hurled through the air as the twister made its way through the city before it blew roofs off homes, downed trees and capsized boats.
One person was trapped in a vehicle near Great Neck Middle School after a branch fell on their car.
The National Weather Service issued a Tornado Warning for the Fort Story area in north Virginia Beach just before 6pm.
Footage shows the tornado tearing across the water with intense flowing winds before it reached the pier on Bay Island and capsized the boats which were docked.
At least 12 homes were destroyed by the tornado and no injuries have been reported so far.
A devastating tornado ripped through the city of Virginia Beach, Virginia, on Sunday afternoon and left a trail of destruction
At least 12 homes were destroyed by the tornado and no injuries have been reported so far
Clips show the extensive damage left on homes along Upper Chelsea Reach and Haversham Close in the Great Neck area with roofs blown off and crushed by fallen trees
One person was trapped in a vehicle near Great Neck Middle School after a branch fell on their car
Several homes reported gas leaks while thousands of other customers lost power during the intense storm
The National Weather Service issued a Tornado Warning for the Fort Story area in north Virginia Beach just before 6pm.
Clips show the extensive damage left on homes along Upper Chelsea Reach and Haversham Close in the Great Neck area with roofs blown off and crushed by fallen trees.
And several homes reported gas leaks while thousands of other customers lost power during the intense storm.
Virginia Natural Gas and Dominion power responded the situation with crews on the ground.
More than 14,000 homes reportedly lost power during the day but that figure is down at around 1,000 now.
The majority of power is expected to be restored on Sunday night but some outages in Virginia Beach which is inaccessible to repair crews due to fallen trees will continue into Monday.
Tree trucks, snapped branches and leaves were covered the floor on the roads.
Virginia Beach City warned its residents about the raging tornado on Twitter and wrote: ‘Attention reported Tornado on the ground in area of River Road and Great Neck.
Footage shows the tornado tearing across the water with intense flowing winds before it reached the pier on Bay Island and capsized the boats which were docked
The National Weather Service issued a Tornado Warning for the Fort Story area in north Virginia Beach just before 6pm
Mounds of debris were hurled through the air as the twister made its way through the city before it blew roofs off homes, downed trees and capsized boats
‘Current damages include trees down including residence and a vehicle. Please call 911 for emergencies including trees down and 311 for information regarding other impacts or information.’
Virginia Beach Fire Department quickly responded to ‘calls for major storm damage to multiple homes’.
Emergency crews patrolled the impacted area in a bus and picked up residents who needed help getting the Great Neck Recreation Center which has been set up as a shelter for those whose homes have been destroyed. Five people are staying there currently.
Multiple boats broke off their moorings, overturned and were damaged.
Virginia Beach is working with the U.S. Coast Guard and the Port of Virginia Maritime Incident Response team to try and recover the boats.
The third day of the Something in the Water festival which had been planned for Sunday evening was cancelled due to the tornado.
Emergency crews patrolled the impacted area in a bus and picked up residents who needed help getting the Great Neck Recreation Center which has been set up as a shelter for those whose homes have been destroyed
The third day of the Something in the Water festival which had been planned for Sunday evening was cancelled due to the tornado
It was set to be attended by National Weather Service officials who stayed behind at the site to handle the response to the storm.
‘No one wants to make this call, but we cannot predict nor negotiate with the weather tonight,’ City Manager Patrick Duhaney said in a statement announcing the cancellation.
‘It is our responsibility to ensure public safety above all else,” said City Manager Patrick Duhaney.’
‘The City thanks the Something in the Water team, our public safety teams and City staff for their hard work this weekend under fluctuating weather conditions, and we appreciate everyone’s understanding of this difficult decision.’