Astronomer Patrick Moore was in the shower when Selsey was struck by its second tornado in less than three years.

The 77-year-old Sky At Night presenter said he was "utterly stunned" by the whirlwind which ripped through West Sands Caravan Park in Selsey, a few hundred metres from where a 115mph twister struck in 1998.

Patrick, Selsey's most famous resident, said: "I had been awake all night keeping an eye out because the weather was so bad I was worried there might be a repeat.

"It was wild. I could hear the wind swirling and the rain lashing. It brought back all the memories."

The second twister yesterday came as a major blow to residents, some of whom have still not completely recovered from the first one in January 1998.

More than 200 mobile homes were damaged. Many were overturned and some had their roof ripped off by the 150mph wind.

And after the devastating tornado that ripped through Bognor on Saturday night, people in West Sussex are now asking: "Where next?"

Terrified residents are comparing the latest incidents to the devastation of the October 1987 storms and believe the situation is going to get worse because of global warming.

They are now talking about "when" the next tornado will hit rather than "if".

The latest twister swept through the caravan park shortly after 7am yesterday, tossing mobile homes into the air and injuring two people.

When the last twister hit in 1998, Patrick Moore hid under a table at his local curry house as hailstones the size of golf balls crashed through through the restaurant.

This time he was in the shower when it struck. He said: "I was very lucky that I was safely out of the way, although I am upset to hear that people have been hurt.

"It must have been less than a quarter of a mile from where the previous whirlwind hit. I can't explain it. It is said that lightning never strikes twice, but clearly the same is not true of tornadoes. It makes me quite nervous to go outside."

The 1998 tornado cut a two-mile swathe across the small town, wrecking one of Patrick's three observatories and damaging a telescope.

He said: "It was a terrifying moment, one that I will never forget, and I expect it was the same today for the poor people in the caravan park."