The Newcastle Herald received a number of calls from excited residents who had managed to capture the spectacular sight off the coast.

Elliot Swift, 16, was on his balcony in Merewether when he noticed the waterspout emerge over Christ Church Cathedral.

‘‘It travelled to the left and then retracted into space, it probably lasted about five to six minutes,’’ he said.

‘‘There was a bit of thunder and a lightning strike in the background as well.’’

Graham Bird, of The Hill, probably had the best view of the phenomenon and said it looked like it hovered across Stockton beach.

‘‘You could see it stirring up water and then see it stirring up the sand along the beach,’’ he said.

Bruce Williams, of Newcastle East, said it was ‘‘the most amazing thing’’.

‘‘I’ve never seen anything like it before, a big cloud of dust was sucked up to the very north of Stockton beach,’’ he said.

‘‘It was hard for me to see from where we are but I wouldn’t be surprised it did a bit of damage.’’

Weatherwatch chief meteorologist Anthony Cornelius said it was possible the waterspout was, in fact, a tornado.

‘‘They’re very similar, and technically a waterspout is a tornado,’’ he said.

‘‘Tornadoes occur when an intense rotating updraft strengthens and tightens and tend to come from ‘supercell thunderstorms’.

‘‘Tornadoes are generally the most sever weather phenomena that a thunderstorm can produce...though this definitely looks on the weaker side of tornadoes.

Mr Cornelius said photos of tornadoes and waterspouts were rare in Australia.