Dramatic image of rare Venice tornado captured by American tourists

An American couple on vacation in Europe captured dramatic images of a rare tornado that formed over Venice, Italy on June 4.

Scott and Tami Blomgren, who are in Italy chaperoning high school students on an educational trip, were speaking to a salesperson at one of the many glass makers in the city when the massive funnel cloud formed.

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The couple was surprised by what happened next.

The man unexpectedly grabbed them by the hands and dragged them upstairs to show them the twister that had formed just a couple kilometres away in the marina of Chioggia.

“As it hit the water, the water spout developed, it pulled the water out of the marina and really got a defined shape and then it looked like almost straight up and down,” Scott Blomgren said.

The couple was able to capture a dramatic photo of the spout, which displayed the grey column of water connecting with the threatening sky.

The Blomgrens, who are from Oklahoma, and are used to wild weather, were surprised that there wasn’t more warning before the tornado struck.

“I said I didn’t hear a tornado siren and the tour guide said we don’t have those here,” said Tami Blomgren.

According to local news outlets, the tornado destroyed a children’s playground and a beach equipment rental store.

The tornado, which lasted only a minute, injured two people as it tossed around beach chairs and umbrellas.

Local residents rushed to help clean up damage caused by the twister.

“I’m touched by the immediate solidarity of people who have offered their help,” Chioggia mayor, Giuseppe Casson, told La Nuova Venezia.

Although tornadoes are rare in Venice, Saturday’s twister represented the second one to strike the city in less than a year.

Last July a man was killed when a powerful tornado ripped roofs off homes in the northeast area of the city.