BERLIN (AP) — A tornado described by firefighters as "brief but fierce" has damaged about 30 houses in western Germany, leaving 10 uninhabitable.

Dozens of residents were forced to spend the night with friends or at a local hotel after the tornado hit Roetgen, near the border with Belgium, on Wednesday afternoon.

A video shows the tornado sweeping through the small town.

Authorities said Thursday that five people were slightly injured.