Frantic shoppers took refuge inside a supermarket during a tropical storm as the annual rainy season begins in Thailand.

Footage shows customers rushing back inside the store when the sudden downpour hit Chaiyaphum province on May 14. A father who was carrying his son slipped on the wet tiled floor but was apparently unhurt.

After helping the shoppers to a safe spot, workers checked doors and windows while pulling abandoned carts inside.

No one was reported hurt but there was some minor damage to the roofs outside.

Shopper Sichuan Pattachalee said: ‘It was really scary. Everyone ran inside the store when there was a strong wind. Even the ones who were almost outside the exit.’

The Thai Meteorological Department said Thailand had entered its rainy season around the end of the second week of May and it will last until mid-October.

Soaring temperatures reaching 35 degrees Celsius are often followed by powerful tropical storms with thunder, lightning, rain and flash floods which cause rivers to flow faster and become dangerous.

Neighbouring countries in Southeast Asia such as Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines also experience the annual rainy season at the same time.