Drinkers in Welsh village flee 'mini tornado' in pub car park

Drinkers at a a Welsh pub are seen running away from a "mini tornado". CCTV footage captured a twisting column of dust sweep through the Begelly Arms car park in Pembrokeshire yesterday.

A man and a woman sprinting away from the rapidly approaching swirling cloud from the car park towards the restaurant. Another gentleman can be spotted dashing towards a table to rescue his drink before the small whirlwind knocks it down.

According to the Met Office, what the villagers experienced was not a tornado but a "dust devil", also colloquially known as a 'willy willy'. This phenomenon is described as an "upward spiralling, dust filled vortex of air that may vary in height from a few feet to over 1,000".

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In contrast with a tornado which forms from clouds descending towards the ground, a dust devil moves upwards due to a rising column of air from the ground.

Dust devils typically arise in desert and semi-arid regions where dry grounds and high surface temperature generate strong updrafts. Even though they bear resemblance to small tornadoes, dust devils are far less menacing or damaging as they generally only persist for a few minutes, reports Wales Online.

The Begelly Arms owner Peter Adams said it was a calm day with "no wind at all" when suddenly a dust devil appeared out of nowhere. North Wales Live has launched a WhatsApp community group where you can get the latest stories delivered straight to your phone

"My wife and I were sitting outside talking to one of our customers. We were just sitting there and having a quiet drink under the canopy," he described. "Then we heard a car alarm go off, looked round, and [the dust devil] is the first thing we saw."

Peter, 66, detailed how the dust devil moved across a car, triggering its alarm, and lasted around 30 seconds before heading towards where he was seated. "We didn't know what to expect...we all braced ourselves quickly and put our hands over the tops of the drinks," he said.

He mentioned previous sightings of funnel clouds in the area, which can become tornadoes if they touch down, leading them to initially think it might be one. "It hit the actual [canopy] where we were sitting, and I think it must have stopped it in its tracks."

Adding to his account, he said: "I've never seen one like that before. You see gusts of winds now and again, but I've never seen one coming across the car park like that, moving as if it was being radio-controlled...It was quite strange to watch."

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