HIGH winds picked up a mobile home and smashed it into a neighbouring caravan when a weather phenomenon called a 'line squall' ripped through Great Yarmouth.

The home at Marsh Farm Caravan Site in Mill Road, Cobholm was torn apart, with the roof missing and insulation blown into neighbouring streets, at around 12.15pm today.

Nobody was in the home that was lifted up, but the occupant of the neighbouring caravan was sat indoors when the mobile home smashed into his wall.

He did not wish to speak of his ordeal, but eyewitnesses have told of how they scrambled onto the caravan site, fearing somebody was seriously injured.

Stuart Jones, 30, lives in Empress Road, across the street from the caravan site.

'It was like a mini hurricane,' he said. 'We were talking about the wind picking up and the next thing I knew I couldn't see anything - it just went misty.

'I legged it upstairs and that's when I saw the mobile home crashing into the one beside it.'

He says he hopped over the caravan site's wall to check everyone was safe, and together with others switched off more than half a dozen leaking gas canisters.

'It must have been a shock for the man as the mobile home crashed into his home,' he said. 'It was just five or six seconds of wind.'

Council workers attended to clean up the debris, and the emergency services were called.

A spokesman for Norfolk Police said: 'We had a call to say a caravan had gone over and officers attended to assess the scene and make sure it was safe.'

The Star Hotel, in Hall Quay, had tiles blown off its roof and the pavement below was cordoned off, and fences and brick walls were blown down around Cobholm.

Forecasters at WeatherQuest say the line squall was caused by a sudden change in wind direction as a warm and cold front clashed.