A wind turbine was engulfed in spinning flames after being struck by lightning in Cromwell, north Texas on Friday July 22.

Footage shows the burning structure when fire crews arrived to tackle the freak weather inferno.

Onlooker Brent Havins told local media that he was working at a cell tower in the area when he saw a lightning bolt hit the wind turbine. Flames then engulfed the wind turbine while it was spinning, creating circles of smoke in the air.

Brent said: 'It took me a moment to process what I was watching.'

Fire chief Perry Shaw estimated there were around 800 gallons of oil in the gearbox and around 1,300 gallons of mineral oil in the ground-level transformer, which caused the smoke to appear dark black in the sky.