STAN CULLIMORE

One of the thunderclaps was so intense, so loud and so downright thundery, that an enormous spark shot out of the wall and across our bedroom

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MANY years ago, in the middle of a rather dramatic storm, Mrs C and I went out in the car to get some last minute bits and pieces for a birthday party.

We took our youngest with us. When we got to the shops, I agreed to stay in the car with the toddler, rather than going through the bother of undoing the straps on his child seat. So far, so boring.

However, things got a bit more interesting a couple of minutes later when a gust of wind hit the enormous oak tree we were parked beneath. It blew over and landed right on top of our car. Now, in the normal course of events, that would probably have been the end of us. Big tree landing on small car would generally equal squished humans inside. But as luck would have it, the exact moment the tree fell, another car was driving past, with a roll cage. Which took the weight of the tree and meant my son and I escaped with nothing more than a mild headache, in my case, and a big bag of sweets in my son's case which kept him quiet while we waited for a truck to come and sort things out.