A Gravesend dad witnessed a tornado-like vortex forming over Kent on his way home from a family day out.

Mark Batcheldor spotted the strange formation over Headcorn in the car with his wife Elise and children Lucie, 11, and Jake, eight.

Footage of the spiralling cloud was captured 30 miles away in Hartlip by Lisa Webb, who spotted the phenomenon forming over Stockbury at about 3.45pm on Sunday.

Mr Batcheldor, 48, said: "We'd come through some horrendous weather when we looked up and saw it.

This Is Local London: The spiral was spotted across Kent (SWNS)The spiral was spotted across Kent (SWNS)

"It must have been going for two or three minutes.

"The kids started to get a bit worried though, thinking it was a twister and was getting closer."

Others across the county shared their response to the unique weather front.

Mum of two Tracey Armstrong, 52, was at her father-in-law's home in Rainham when she saw a vortex appear from the clouds.

She said: "It was amazing, I said to everyone 'look, quick there's a funnel cloud' and they all turned around to see it.

"It was there for about four minutes, and you could really see it swirling around and then it kind of got sucked up and disappeared."

The former teaching assistant added she was really excited as she'd "love to see a tornado in real life."

Mason Maclean was in nearby Sittingbourne when he saw the cloud.

He said: "I spotted what looks to be a tornado that hasn't quite yet touched ground."

Best friends Steven Bashford, from Dover, and 27-year-old Shane Wilkinson, spotted a funnel cloud over Detling near Maidstone at about 4.30pm.while driving on the M20.

Steven, 29, said: "We were just really excited to see it - it's a sight we've never seen.

"It definitely looked like it was starting to touch the ground about three or four minutes later.

"It was around for about four or five minutes, then disappeared.

"From Maidstone all the way down to Canterbury it's been a huge weather system with very heavy rain the whole way down."

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