Two dead and nine injured as tornado hits cars full force.

At least two people have been killed after a tornado hit the remote Italian island of Pantelleria on Friday evening.

There were also nine people injured, with four of them in a critical condition, as the tornado overturned at least 10 cars, ripping the roofs off the vehicles.

The 'tromba d'aria' whirlwind hit the Mediterranean island - located 100 km southwest of Sicily - along the Campobello coastline at around 19.00.

The dead include a 47-year-old offduty fireman and an 86-year-old pensioner, reports news agency ANSA, both of whom were driving when the tornado struck.

Italian media published photographs of cars flipped upside down, in scenes described as "apocalyptic" by one rescue worker.

A local resident told Sky TG24 that he heard a loud bang, accompanied by sudden, intense rain and "wind so strong we couldn't get out of the house."

Emergency services were waiting for the weather conditions to improve before flying the wounded to hospitals in Palermo by helicopter.

The island's mayor Vincenzo Campo has proclaimed a day of mourning on Saturday.

Cover photo: La Repubblica