A tornado hit parts of Auckland’s North Shore this afternoon (Tuesday). It killed one man and injured 14 other people. It caused a lot of damage to houses, shops, trees and cars. The Albany shopping mall lost its roof. Sheets of steel from the roof and glass from windows flew in the air making it very dangerous for people outside. The tornado lifted some cars many metres into the air, or rolled cars onto their side or turned cars upside down. It broke some trees in half and lifted other trees out of the ground.
A tornado is also called a twister because it twists round and round very fast as it moves. It happens during thunder storms when warm, moist air near the ground hits cold air above. New Zealand does not have many tornados because our country is an island country not a continent like North America. Usually the path of a tornado is quite short. The tornado drops down for a few kilometers, causing major damage, then it disappears.
People in Albany said the noise was like a large plane above them. It was a very frightening experience.
Grammar
Note: it was frightening; people were frightened. What other adjectives are like this?
Vocabulary
A sheet of steel is a large rectangle of steel. We also say a sheet of paper and a sheet of ice.
Glass from windows is an uncountable noun. Be careful not to say “glasses” because these are what people wear to help their eyesight.