Tornado spotted in Scotland as thunderstorms sweep country

The unusual weather event was seen in Midlothian.

The tornado was spotted in Midlothian (@aislingtho/PA)

A tornado was spotted in Scotland as heavy rain and thunderstorms swept parts of the country.

People in Midlothian were surprised to see the unusual weather event on Tuesday afternoon.

A Met Office yellow warning of thunderstorms was in force until 11pm on Tuesday for much of central, eastern and north eastern Scotland.

The Met Office said the tornado was a waterspout, a type of tornado that forms over open water.

Twitter user Aisling posted a video of it passing Rosewell, Midlothian and wrote: “Never seen anything like it. It went right by our house. The video doesn’t capture how intense it was.”

Others shared their surprise, with one person writing: “Never seen a tornado before in Midlothian” while another tweeted: “Tornado in Midlothian. Crazy weather.”