A rare storm cloud not commonly seen in the UK has been spotted whirling over Norfolk.

Laura Jackson snapped a picture of the meteorological phenomenon on Sunday afternoon in the skies over Hunstanton, saying she had "never seen anything like it".

The storm caused strong wind to blow in from the sea, sending people racing to find cover.

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"It was awful," she said. "There were people running into the Sea Life Centre for cover, children crying, things blowing everywhere - even chips blowing in the air.

"Then five minutes later it was gone."

The picture prompted speculation on social media where it was shared but was cleared up by weather officials who quickly identified it to be a "supercell" storm. 

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A Met Office spokesman said: "Speaking with our meteorologists, the image is displaying super-cellular characteristics.

"The image itself is of a wall cloud and is more like the storms we see in the US, rather than the UK, particularly in September."

According to the US-based National Weather Service, supercells are the least common type of thunderstorm, but they have a high tendancy to produce severe weather.