Raining hay while the sun shines! (updated)

Today, early this afternoon, large clumps of hay started to fall on parts of Audlem. They were said, by a very reliable source, to have been falling many hundreds, if not thousands of feet from the scattered cloud cover and a blue sky. Large clumps of hay were shown to your Audlem Online correspondent in Church View and smaller clumps were still seen to be tumbling down.

Could there have been a mini-tornado or whirlwind nearby that carried freshly cut hay up to such a height? Given that most farm vehicles keep their wheels firmly on the ground, and there was relatively little wind, that's a possible explanation. But we are open to alternative suggestions – contact the webteam if you have any idea, or indeed, also saw the crop falling from the sky.

David Basford of Market Drayton writes later this afternoon: "I'm sure that this was caused by a whirlwind. I well remember, as a young man making hay in the meadows by Stoke on Tern Church. It was a very hot still day, and in those days the hay was in "Cocks", (large piles of loose hay). Suddenly, there was a sound of rushing wind, and one of the "Cocks" spiraled into the air, and disappeared in the direction of Wistanswick, never to be seen by us again. It is a sight that I've never forgotten."

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