Stormy Weather II

[Serial_Apologist]

A few dodgy days ahead up here, though Dudley is not looking like it will be Arwen for us here in Angus (fingers crossed and candles and headtorches at the ready) - had a walk in a nearby wood a couple of days ago - I say walk, but it was more like a scramble over toppled trunks. Quite scary. Sunday looks pretty bad up here according to the meteorologists, but one day at a time, I suppose. Stay safe out there.

A lot of the felled Scottish trees shown on the lunchtime news were Scots pines, which shallow root and do not have thick sturdy trunks, though they can be bendy. I think I'm right in saying that conifers are only indigenous at higher altitudes than where many of them have been used for plantations, and that *even* in Scotland, especially the lowland areas, deciduous are as well suited as further south. Confers are not favourable to biodiversity either - it is noticeable how little grows under or around them, due to the chemical make-up of the needle type foliage being different from deciduous leaves.

[DracoM]

Bucketing it down on a big wind.
More to come, we're thinking!!

[johncorrigan]

A lot of the felled Scottish trees shown on the lunchtime news were Scots pines, which shallow root and do not have thick sturdy trunks, though they can be bendy. I think I'm right in saying that conifers are only indigenous at higher altitudes than where many of them have been used for plantations, and that *even* in Scotland, especially the lowland areas, deciduous are as well suited as further south. Confers are not favourable to biodiversity either - it is noticeable how little grows under or around them, due to the chemical make-up of the needle type foliage being different from deciduous leaves.

S_A, Down by the River Isla, in one of the woods nearby, which Mrs C and I enjoy a wander in, the conifers had been battered by Arwen and though it's not an enormous wood there were at least 100 trees down when we tried to steer a path through. However when we reached the deciduous part of the forest the trees were untouched - the oaks and beech and birch seemed largely unaffected by the storms, apart from the odd branch or two. The rowans also held strong - of course, those trees were not in leaf, so that must have helped. I recall us getting a storm a few years ago in June and some of the deciduous trees, in full leaf, were forced over. Pretty amazing loss of trees so far this winter - 8 million approx, as you said. The roads up here are full of log lorries.

[pastoralguy]

Starting to get wild and windy here in Edinburgh. (So no change there then!)

[oddoneout]

Prospects for this coming Friday are already scaring the bejeebers out of me - I've never seen an official forecast prediction of average winds speeds of 49 mph: one should double that for maximum gusts, they tell us. Over 8 million trees are estimated to have been already blown down from this year's storms in Scotland alone - hal;f the number for the great 1987 October storm.

You're not the only one SA. I hate high winds at night and that dislike has been made much worse since a storm caused considerable damage to my roof and my neighbour's by lifting ridge tiles and throwing them down the back roof and, in my case, onto the kitchen extension roof, 3 years ago. Although the missing ridge tiles were replaced when repairs were done a couple of the others are not as good as they could be. The whole roof is booked to be dealt with when my neighbour has his done but not until the autumn.
The gardening stint was pleasant this morning, plenty of sun and mild, with the wind blustery but not a problem. It's been winding itself up during the afternoon and getting quite bad now.

[BBMmk2]

A good, sunny day today, after yesterday’s rain! We’ll be blown away tomorrow.

[Ein Heldenleben]

You're not the only one SA. I hate high winds at night and that dislike has been made much worse since a storm caused considerable damage to my roof and my neighbour's by lifting ridge tiles and throwing them down the back roof and, in my case, onto the kitchen extension roof, 3 years ago. Although the missing ridge tiles were replaced when repairs were done a couple of the others are not as good as they could be. The whole roof is booked to be dealt with when my neighbour has his done but not until the autumn.
The gardening stint was pleasant this morning, plenty of sun and mild, with the wind blustery but not a problem. It's been winding itself up during the afternoon and getting quite bad now.

Two hours ago the Beeb forecast for Friday a.m. knocked about 20mph off wind speeds in Devon. Now the peak is back up to 90 mph which is as high as I can remember. The only good thing is that it’s a South Westerly and trees , and indeed some coastal villages , have grown up to “cope”. Even so I suspect there will many trees down. Given that it’s happening 08.00 / 09.00 I’m surprised they are not delaying school openings for a couple of hours.

[cat]

Expect a red warning from the Met Office for much of the south shortly.

The media really need to convey to the wider public just how serious it's going to be tomorrow. I'd hope all public transport is suspended and schools are shut tomorrow for the entire day.

[Bryn]

Expect a red warning from the Met Office for much of the south shortly.

The media really need to convey to the wider public just how serious it's going to be tomorrow. I'd hope all public transport is suspended and schools are shut tomorrow for the entire day.

Indeed. Those with gardens would be well advised to make sure everything is secured from flying about, etc. today. That includes securing the likes of wheelie bins. Maybe bring inside, if possible.

[DracoM]

Bitter westerly up here - temp -4C plus wind chill, but DRY - so far...............!!
As usual, BBC forecast is way off the actual conditions. For them, presumably, the 'North West' is Manchester, Salford and the cafes etc round the BBC centre.
Well, sorry, but where I live can be raw, elemental, fantastic, life-affirming, and also viciously cold, drowning in rain etc etc.
NONE or few of the serious farmers round here take any / much note of the BBC forecasts and, indeed, many have registered with: https://www.yr.no/en/forecast/daily-...gland/Cumbria/
.......................which is more accurate and based in..
........................NORWAY

[Ein Heldenleben]

I see there is now a Red Warning (stay inside ) for North Cornwall , north Devon , Somerset and South Wales and an amber warning for the South Cornish and South Devon Coasts. Think I’ll postpone the coastal walk tomorrow…

[Serial_Apologist]

I put out a call to all the residents in our block this morning, recommending they take all pot plants, tables and chairs indoors. Six of the upstairs maisonettes have balconies, four of which are south-facing. I've also brought mine in from outside my entrance. Better to be safe than sorry. One problem could be the cable festooned around the western end of the building, which has never been fixed to the wall. From what I can make out it is the land line to my upstairs neighbour's phone.

This afternoon I do all my groceries provisioning I would normally do on a Friday.

[Old Grumpy]

Gotcha grocery's in, S_A?

[Serial_Apologist]

Gotcha grocery's in, S_A?

Yes I have, OG: surprised at the number of shoppers I chatted to who were quite unaware of the bad weather on the way. A lovely afternoon for an extended cycle ride too: talk about the calm before the storm!

[antongould]

Get everything tied down cloughers ….. got plenty of candles ….. ????