A tornado whipped across the Bay of Plenty coast on the 28th of May 1968.

The tornado wrecked sheds, damaged homes, snapped and stripped trees and hurled iron sheets hundreds of feet.

It caused damage in two areas, affecting about 60 houses and buildings.

Apart from some flooding, the tornado spared Tauranga and Mount Maunganui, where the strongest wind recorded was only 30 knots (56 km/hr).

There was some disruption to the power supply in Ohauiti, Pukehina, Soldiers Road and Esdailes Road but it was repaired by noon.

Some toll services between Te Puke and Whakatane were affected when lines were brought down but there was no disruption of the toll service in Tauranga.

The tornado was accompanied by heavy rain, thunder and flashes of lighting.

Only minor damage was caused to roads in the Bay of Plenty.

The tornado struck a farm on Esdailes Road at Omokoroa at 6am and blew in windows, blew the cowshed to pieces, flattened a car shed on to the two cars it contained, uprooted trees and blew the roof off the woolshed. Wreckage was strewn over about 50 acres. The farmer estimated the damage at about $4000 ($61,400 2010 dollars). Another farmer on Esdailes Road lost part of the roof of their barn and trees near their house were blown down.

Once the tornado left Omokoroa, no damage was reported until the tornado reached Paengaroa near Te Puke at 7.15am. There a farmers implement shed was blown off.

Two houses at Pukehina Beach were badly damaged including a fairly new two-storeyed house that had been flattened. It was unoccupied at the time.

The tornado disappeared at Pukehina Beach.