THIS is the terrifying moment a freak waterspout tornado sent hundreds of umbrellas and sunbeds flying on an Italian beach.
Panicked holidaymakers were seen running to safety at the popular resort town of Marina di Grosseto, in Italy’s Tuscany region.
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Dramatic footage showed the waterspout, a small tornado that forms over the sea, making landfall and sending the beach furniture swirling around in the sky on Thursday.
One beachgoer filmed the scary ordeal as the tornado quickly approached him.
He jumps up and runs for cover, all the while filming the waterspout as it picks up items of the beach and sends them high into the air.
Local media say the waterspout travelled along the coast, wreaking damage as it passed as onlookers could be heard gasping in disbelief.
No injuries were reported in the incident and there were no bathers on the beach at the time due to the poor weather.
There was an orange alert for bad weather in place throughout Tuscany at the time, NeedToKnow reports.
Claudio Castellucci, who owns the beach resort Bagno Giglio, told local media: “The damage was significant, but fortunately, no one was injured.
“The few bathers on the beach were able to seek shelter under the awning.
“The scene was terrifying: the sunbeds were lifted off the beach and swept into a vortex, eventually landing in the carpark over 50 metres away.”
A waterspout is a whirling funnel-shaped or tube-like column of air full of spray occurring over water.
Waterspouts usually occur in tropical areas and almost all have intensities similar to those of weak tornadoes.
Elsewhere in Italy, another towering waterspout tornado crashed into a packed out beach in the southern region of Salento.
Footage of the terrifying phenomenon shows it hurtling towards shocked sunbathers and sending them fleeing to safety as chairs, jet skis and tables get thrown into the air.
It caused mass panic among beachgoers on the San Cataldo, Torre Specchia and San Foca marinas on Friday.
Video footage of the waterspout forming shows it surging from under the clouds and spinning in a frenzy towards the San Foca coast.
A growing cloud of thick vapour also formed underneath the tornado-like weather as it gathered momentum in the sea.
The aftermath of the chaotic storm showed how bins, deckchairs and umbrellas had been tossed across the beach by the blast.
People could be seen out of breath and soaked through by the side of a road sitting above the beachfront.
They managed to flee from the tornado spout by running up some steps leading to the beach.
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The flooded pavement is covered in dirt that had been washed away by the waterspout.
No one was injured in the blustery melee.
What is a waterspout?
A WATERSPOUT is a whirlwind of air and water mist, according to the National Ocean Service.
They act in the same way as land tornadoes with them causing paths of destruction and throwing around items.
They can form during severe thunderstorms with high winds, strong hail and dangerous lightning.
They can reach up to 330ft in diameter and can last for up to an hour, according to experts at National Geographic.
A waterspout was even blamed on the Bayesian superyacht tragedy last month.
A “Black Swan” sea twister off Sicily caused the yacht to capsize, say reports.
Frightening footage emerged of a separate waterspout lashing the Italian coast on the same day the Bayesian sank.
A beach in the Basilicata region also showed a twister tear by the sands.
Blue skies ominously fade to darkness as it approaches, before holidaymakers run for their lives.
