Rare tornado kills one in Netherlands

A tornado ripped through a southwestern Dutch city on Monday, killing at least one person and injuring seven others in the first fatal twister to hit the country for three decades.

The whirlwind left a trail of destruction through the seaside city of Zierikzee, blowing the roofs off homes and toppling trees onto cars.

Images on social media showed bits of debris rotating in the air in the fierce winds and a huge funnel descending from stormy clouds as the tornado hit the city in the scenic province of Zeeland.

"The damage is considerable in several streets in Zierikzee. In addition to flying roof tiles and fallen trees, roofs have been blown off four houses," the Zeeland safety authority said.

It said there had been a "huge deployment" of emergency services.

Local newspaper, the Provinciale Zeeuwse Courant, said the dead person was a tourist who was hit on the head by a roof tile at the city's harbour area.

"It felt like the room was being vacuumed," added another resident, Douwe Ouwerkerk.

The tornado hit at the start of the tourism season in Zierikzee, which sits on one of the bridge-connected islands that comprise watery Zeeland province, and whose attractions include a historic harbour and the 15th century "Fat Tower".