Consider the Biblical flood, a story that appears in many cultures, the references to whirlwinds, or the storms of Odysseus' wanderings. The very highest winds on Earth, perhaps up to 300 mph, are in tornadoes, which occur over land, as in The Wizard of Oz . Tornado funnels are only a few hundreds of feet across. The really big storms occur over the sea and their strength is hard to imagine. The awesome fury of this condition can only be experienced.
Words are inadequate to describe it.
Storms of all sizes result from circular, cyclonic, motion of air around a region of lower air pressure. The largest, called tropical cyclones, occur over the ocean near the equator. On the average some 38 hurricanes form world-wide each year. Clouds cover most of the storm and underneath are circular bands of very heavy rain. As air spirals in towards the center, winds increase to as high as 150 mph or more.