Tornadoes, floods and gales batter Britain as drivers are stranded in roads swamped with water with more on the way |

Stormy weather led to huge waves crashing into the harbour in Porthcawl, South Wales

Tornadoes, floods and gales of up to 75mph are continuing to batter Britain, with drivers becoming stranded on roads swamped with water.

Forecasters have warned there is no end in sight to the ferocious weather which has been wreaking havoc across the UK for the past 48 hours, with gusty winds and torrential rain expected to continue.

Last night, a pair of motorists filmed the moment that a terrifying tornado swept across a motorway on the Wirral, causing a huge whirl of air to circulate over the M53, just metres in front of them.

Meanwhile, in Wolverhampton, a van driver managed to scramble out of a window to safety after his vehicle was swept against a footbridge in a flooded ford.

This is the moment a terrifying tornado swept across a motorway on the Wirral, as gusty winds and severe weather hit the UK

The van driver managed to scramble to safety after torrential rain caused the ford to rise 3ft in just one hour

Bolt from above: Lighting over the River Thames at Chiswick/Mortlake in west London this afternoon

Today, The Met Office issued further weather alerts for strong gusts in the south west of England and southern Wales, which it said would be compounded by heavy, thundery rain.

With the weather warning covering an area from Cornwall to Bournemouth and Cardiff to Swansea, it said the public should brace itself for further potential disruption.

The rare tornado was spotted yesterday evening by Matthew Hughes, who saw the freak event as he was driving through Bromborough with his friend Rob Tulley. Shocked at what was unfolding, Mr Hughes filmed the intimidating twister and posted the rare footage to YouTube.

A spokesperson from the Met Office later confirmed the dramatic footage showed a tornado, adding that it was rare to obtain footage of that nature.

The Met Office said: ‘Although it is unusual that we obtain footage of a tornado in the UK, it can occasionally occur, and this sighting is a tornado.’

The sighting came just hours after a tornado ripped through a small town in Derbyshire and amid warnings that more strong winds are set to sweep across the country today.

Huge, crashing waves at high tide caused the seawater to swamp the roads surrounding the harbour in Penzance

Rescue teams have been out in force for the past 24 hours, attempting to salvage the wreckage caused by the extreme conditions.

Staffordshire Fire and Rescue services were called to Trescott Ford in Staffordshire after a driver had to clamber through a window after getting stuck in the swollen ford.

The torrent swept the man’s blue Citroen van against a footbridge after torrential rain caused the ford’s water level to rise to 3ft in just one hour.

Firefighters had to seal off the road leading to the ford while they helped the driver rescue tools from his van before towing out of the water.

Crew commander Wayne Dockerty, of Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service, said: ‘We made sure he was safe and then put the cordons up to stop any other drivers attempting to cross.

‘This served as a warning for motorists to take extra care in this kind of circumstance since the water can often be a lot deeper than it looks.’

Elsewhere, a man had to be rescued from a car that was caught in deep flood water on the A452 Chester Road near Walsall, West Midlands – a major dual carriageway – as torrential rain and thunderstorms swept across the Midlands. A family-of-three also became stranded in water in Walsall Wood on the same afternoon.

Pedestrians were caught in heavy rain in central London earlier today, as unexpected showers hammered down after a morning of sunshine

Yesterday, a tornado ripped through the small town of Alfreton, Derbyshire, causing thousands of pounds worth of damage and completely damaging the top floor of this building