11 Apr 2023

Tornado tears through Bay of Plenty kiwifruit orchard

11:17 pm on 11 April 2023
Katikati

A tornado hit Pukakura Road in the Bay of Plenty town of Katikati this evening. Photo: GoogleMaps

A Bay of Plenty family took shelter in a hallway as a tornado ripped past their home and significantly damaged a kiwifruit orchard.

It is the fifth tornado since Sunday - the first struck East Auckland, then Tasman District, New Plymouth and Paraparaumu were hit.

The Bay of Plenty Times reports the twister hit Katikati on Tuesday evening.

Shelley Edmiston took cover in her home with three daughters and saw debris flying as the tornado tore through the kiwifruit orchard, taking out tall trees and orchard poles as it neared their yard.

Falling trees took down power lines along Pukakura Road and fire-fighters were called to help with clean-up after the storm.

There have been no reports of damage to homes.

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