A quiet movie night almost resulted in a family's own blockbuster after what is believed to be a tornado ripped through their backyard last night.

Pahoia residents Colette Henare, her partner Wayne Bryant and his eight-year-old daughter were settling inside for a wet weather movie when they were left shaken by a tornado.

The aftermath of the wild weather which ripped through Colette Henare and Wayne Bryant's Pahoia property.

'We were supposed to watch a movie, but this was a bit more scary,” says Colette.

'At the time we were all a bit unsure whether to go outside.”

The tornado came through the family's paddocks and backyard around 8pm ripping up trees and throwing branches across their back lawn.

'It was pelting down with rain and sounded a bit like hail. We heard all the wind just howling and then all of a sudden it just sounded like so much stuff getting thrown against the side of the house.”

She says leaves were blown through the windows with large branches on the back lawn resulting in a cracked window.

'It sounded like it went over the top of the house and we thought the roof was going to come off.”

Cleaning up this morning, Colette says it appears they bore the brunt of the tornado because they live down a gully and many of the neighbours have escaped unscathed.

Metservice duty forecaster Ian Gall says there is the potential for tornadoes in the forecasted wet weather, but suggests the strong winds in the region are to blame for the destruction.

'When thunderstorms come through they have the potential to have some pretty strong gusts with them.'