General Chat

Just had the most wonderful Goan Sea Bass Curry in the Cinnamon Tree in Nant Garw. So Fish is very much on my mind at moment.

Absolutely wellying it down and lots of surface water, so it is certainly going to be a very wet and windy couple of days. :-(

let's give Fish a rest shall we!!!!

I recall the 1987 storm well, a larch tree in our garden crashed in the night on to a neighbour's car, roads were blocked and the oaks in nearby Sevenoaks were decimated, so it is not to be taken too lightly if a similar storm is expected, it's just sensible to take a few precautions...then if nothing happens you can at least say "told you so" ;-)

Just checked Michael Fish's 10 day site. Storm risk is now 13% for tonight, 37% Sunday and 32% Monday. It does get changed several times a day.

Lashings of rain and loads of wind.

Will be interesting to see if Fish is right or the Met Office. My money is on Fish, but still better to be ready for the worst. :-)

Anyone on here living in Sevenoaks - or was it renamed Oneoak in 1987?

Years ago when the weather was rough and the buses weren't running and my car was snowed in I walked to work and walked back.

Just wear the appropriate clothing.

I shall leave my car at the top of the drive rather than down the side of the house just in case something comes off the roof

Sky News – 1 hour 9 minutes ago

England and Wales will be hit by a "significant storm" on Sunday night with winds of up to 80mph in some areas, the Met Office has warned.

Forecasters say the storm is expected to bring "exceptionally strong winds" to parts of the UK when it strikes late on Sunday night.

There were hopes the huge storm brewing over the Atlantic Ocean would miss the UK , and sweep instead through the English Channel.

But meteorologists are now certain it will strike the south west of England and could leave a trail of destruction as it gusts north-east across the country, causing structural damage, and bringing down trees and power lines.

The Met Office said winds of between 60mph and 80mph are expected across the southern half of the UK.

John I don't think it is done to cause panic, it is to inform. Whether we react is up to us. In our case we have erred on the side of caution have moved two hanging baskets from an exposed site to a more protected site and have put lightweight metal garden chairs under cover. Hopefully there is nothing else to take flight that we can prevent. Hope the fences stay standing but we think we have taken all precautions for ours and other's safety.

We will be prepared not to go out on Monday.

But what we have done is not panicking, it is being sensible. I hope the storm doesn't occur but if it does we will know we have done what we could thanks to the advanced warning. :-)

Garden furniture cleaned and placed in conservatory. Camping gas cooker and supplies of gas checked. Plenty of candles. Mobiles charged. Windup radio to hand. Roller garage door disconnected from electric opening system. Generator in place with fuel. Wood store is almost full.

We live in a small village only ten miles from York so probably won't need any of the above but better safe than sorry.

they do seem pretty certain about it now

The storms last Autumn brought down a lot of trees, blocking roads. As a detour in this part of Scotland is usually several miles, the Council worked miracles by clearing roads overnight and having most open by morning.

Earlier this year the workmen were out cutting off all branches that were likely to fall across a road and also removing completely any trees leaning at an angle towards the road.

As a result, road blockages are far less likely in any storms and they have probably saved themselves a lot of hassle and quite a lot of money.

Sky News – 2 hours 33 minutes ago


A storm which could reach hurricane strengths of 80mph or more will definitely hit Britain on Monday, weather experts have warned.

There were hopes the huge storm brewing over the Atlantic Ocean would miss the UK, and sweep instead through the English Channel.

But meteorologists are now certain it will strike the south west of England and could leave a trail of destruction as it gusts north-east across the country, causing structural damage, and bringing down trees and power lines.

Roads may also be hit by flash flooding, bringing rush hour traffic on Monday morning to a halt, and homes could be flooded.

Severe weather alerts are in place for England and Wales, with an amber warning, meaning "be prepared", for the southern half of England and Wales.

There is a lesser yellow warning, meaning "be aware", for the rest of Wales and England up to the border with Scotland.

Sky News weather presenter Jo Wheeler said: "The storm is coming through at the worst possible time; from around midnight to midday on Monday - which takes in the rush hour when people are trying to get to work.

"Winds gusting at 80mph are quite capable of bringing down trees and power lines and causing structural damage.

Trees are still full in leaf at this time of year and the ground is quite damp so there is more chance they can be ripped from the ground, and branches ripped from trees.

"There's also the possibility of flooding with torrential downpours and leaves blocking drains. South Wales and southern England are most at risk.

"There is likely to be flash flooding on roads and the AA will be out in force."

She said Atlantic storms of this type usually develop further west across the ocean, losing strength by the time they reach the UK and Ireland.

But the storm will develop on Saturday and intensify on Sunday fairly close to the coast before it strikes with full force.

A strong jet stream and warm air close to the UK are contributing to its development and strength.

Winds could top 80mph as they hit seaside towns and villages before slowly losing power as they gust across the UK and out to the North Sea.

Some have compared its potential to the Great Storm of 1987 and record-breaking gales in south Wales in 1989.

It will strike two weeks later than the Great Storm of 1987, which left a trail of destruction on October 15 and 16.

Veteran weatherman Michael Fish famously failed to predict its severity before it flattened trees, knocked out power and left 22 people dead in England and France.

This time he warned people to "batten down the hatches" and keep checking the forecasts as the powerful storm approaches.

Darron Burness, head of the AA's flood rescue team, said: "The timing couldn't really be worse, potentially causing significant travel disruption on Monday morning, which is one of the busiest times on the roads.

"If it's bad where you are, keep tuned to the weather and traffic reports - in case of road or bridge closures - and heed any local police advice about whether it's safe to travel.

"At a minimum, take a fully-charged mobile phone and warm, weatherproof clothing."

He said the AA's specialist flood rescue team, driving modified Land Rovers, have been working all week and are on stand-by.

The Metropolitan Police has urged people to avoid calling 999 during the storm unless there is a real emergency.

A spokesman said: "The Metropolitan Police Service is reminding Londoners to dial 101 when contacting police when it's not an emergency with expected increases in demand brought about by high winds in the next few days."

Man the lifeboats!! ....and as Jonesey was often heard to say "don't paniic " :-D

OFITG. Again, you are being completely disingenuous and very combative. Fish was presenting the Government's weather predictions 26 years ago and his bosses were trying to calm panic that had set in. His script would have been approved as best prediction, and no one was held to account for wrong information.

At that time the strong winds were heading well south of us. As you know, they turned at last minute and hit south coast in particular.

That happens!!! It is snowing in Iceland now. That snow could suddenly divert south and the northern isles could be covered with a blanket of snow by dusk today. But the likelihood of it happening is very slight, and it is surely wrong to panic people every time there is a small chance of very adverse weather patterns changing dramatically.

Everyone has their own weather forecast that they tend to rely on, I tend to go by the forecasts for my area on uk.weather.com.

As to my comments about Michael Fish's forecast my criticism is that he played down the possibility of the storm in 1987 hitting the UK. I believe what he said was, "earlier on today apparently, a woman rang the BBC and said she heard that there was a hurricane on the way, well if you are watching don't worry there isn't, but having said that actually the weather will become very windy but most of the strong winds incidentally will be down over Spain and across into France"

As to your comment "or is it just a wind-up" I shall treat that remark with the contempt it deserves.

I remember meeting a retired Met Office chap who was Michael Fish's boss in 1987. He told me that Michael was presenting exactly the Met Office weather prediction and did mention adverse weather in his bulletin. He did nothing wrong.

Fish has remained the best known and most successful weatherman since 1987. You are an intelligent man, OFITG. Do you seriously not respect his weather forecasts because of an incident in 1987 when he was simply presenting what he was told to present? Or is it just a wind-up?

Anyway, less likelihood of storm conditions on other sites. I think Fish's forecasts are the most accurate I have seen recently - but who knows? We can all get things wrong and I have moved loose objects from garden this morning

The last weather forecaster I would listen to is Michael Fish, I remember his fishy forecast when he fobbed of peoples worries about the storm that hit the UK on October 15 1987 when he more or less told viewers, not to worry as there is not going to be any severe storm.

That storm not only damaged buildings and brought down trees, it killed several people - as winds of over a 100mph hit many parts of the country.

As to the storm expected to hit parts of the UK on Monday 28th October2013 the Met Office has amber warnings in place for several parts of the UK stating they expect the storm to hit the UK late on Sunday and that it is expected to run northeastwards, probably across England and Wales, with very strong winds on its southern and western flanks. There is the potential for gusts of 60 to 80 mph quite widely and locally over 80 mph, especially on exposed coasts.

Can I just say from nov through til mar we up here in the hebrides have regular gales every week and 70 is not bad really!! When you are use to 90 mph and the lectric goes off quite often in the winter, you just make sure you are always prepared.

I mean enough warnings have been given. So make sure you have batteries for torches and keep them handy at night.Tidy around the outside of your house and garden making sure there isnt anything that could fly up and break a window or cause damage.

Apart from this info there is nothing you can do really. Keep in touch with you older rellies and make sure they are safe.

I used to worry 20 years ago but now im so used to the wild weather, i dont think anything of it when they say"strong winds 50-60" mph, just a breeze as we say.

Last year when the wind speed hit 90 we had a hurricane party in the candle light lol

Sorry shouldnt laugh really as some people will be scared. I hope you will all stay safe and hope its not as bad as they have predicted.

Florence
In the hebrides

very quiet here at the moment - no rain and no wind