Violent downpours have resulted in a funnel cloud forming in the sky above Lancashire.
The cloud, a tornado which does not touch the ground, was spotted at around 2.30pm.
Weather experts said if the funnel had touched down it could have caused severe damage.
The region has been battered by heavy thunderstorms and strong gales - ideal conditions for funnel clouds to form.
Nigel Bolton, a weather forecaster with the Met Office, told the BBC: "We have about 30 to 40 touchdown tornadoes a year in the UK and if this funnel cloud had touched down it could have badly damaged a tree or a shed roof.
"However, because the cloud base was either too high or too weak it couldn't make the ground so it just hung there in suspension."
Police and Fire Services in Merseyside and Lancashire said there had been no reports of any damage caused by the funnel cloud.
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