The UK, especially the southern counties of England have been experiencing some extreme conditions recently. The Somerset Levels flooding, now along with other areas, the River Seven, Thames etc. Coastal regions in Cornwall, Devon and North Wales have all suffered from wave damage. On the east coast I understand there has also been some land erosion into the sea.
Up until yesterday where I live has escaped some of the more dramatic events. However driving on the way home from work around 4 pm, I noticed the wind had started to pick up speed dramatically. The Met Office had issued a Red Alert earlier in the day. As I neared home (15 mile journey) the wind speed had picked up even more, I passed not one but eight emergency vehicles speeding off in all directions! As I drove down our lane and into the drive I was met by our wheelie bin making its own way into the lane!
Getting inside I made to my way to the weather station/computer ............. 60 mph gusting 80 mph. Once inside I soon acclimatised to the wind noise level, it was around 4.50pm by now and my cats had eyes as big as saucers and Charlie the big male was haring around the house much alarmed at the wind noise. The noise level rose and the weather station readout was very entertaining. At around 5.08pm the constant wind speed was around 80 mph and then it recorded a gust of 93.5 mph. Then the reading became static at 60 odd mph. Realising something was amiss I peered out across the field in the gloom and saw that my anemometer mast was no longer!!!
Hoping to rescue anything that was left I ventured out keeping low along the wall to the mast where I managed to retrieve the whole assembly intact. Peering over the wall and looking down and out across the Cheshire Plain, I could see the lights of Manchester, the airport and right round towards Macclesfield. I could see the blue flashing lights of emergency vehicles making their way to various incidents and more spectacularly the occasional powerline flash as trees were brought down across them.
Sadly although the wind speed definitely increased in the ensuing 15 minutes I was not able to record it. My station is the most exposed around here and without doubt the wind speed must have exceeded 100 mph.
I'll be going out shortly to survey the damage but it isn't any where near as bad as I've seen on the TV this morning in other areas local to us. There's another low due tomorrow apparently along with some snow for us at our level. Happy Days.
Peter.
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