Burns' Day Storm: Difference between revisions
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{{Short description|1990 January storm in Northwestern Europe}} |
{{Short description|1990 January storm in Northwestern Europe}} |
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{{EngvarB|date=October 2013}} |
{{EngvarB|date=October 2013}} |
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{{Use dmy dates|date= |
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2024}} |
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{{more citations needed|date=December 2010}} |
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{{Infobox storm |
{{Infobox storm |
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| lowest temperature = |
| lowest temperature = |
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| sustained wind = mean hourly wind {{convert|64|kn|km/h mph|abbr=on}}, [[Sheerness]], Kent |
| sustained wind = mean hourly wind {{convert|64|kn|km/h mph|abbr=on}}, [[Sheerness]], Kent |
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| gust = {{convert| |
| gust = {{convert|124|kn|km/h mph|abbr=on}}, [[Brocken]]<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.wetterzentrale.de/weatherdata_de.php?station=722&jaar=1990&maand=01&dag=25 | title=Weather observations from German weather stations }}</ref> |
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| total damages (USD) = |
| total damages (USD) = |
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| total fatalities = 47 UK,<ref>{{cite news |title=Burns' Day Storm |
| total fatalities = 47 UK,<ref>{{cite news |title=Burns' Day Storm – 25 January 1990 |url=https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/binaries/content/assets/metofficegovuk/pdf/weather/learn-about/uk-past-events/interesting/1990/burns-day-storm---25-january-1990---met-office.pdf |access-date=20 January 2020 |work=Met Office |date=15 April 2016 |language=en}}</ref> 17 Netherlands,<ref>{{cite news |title=Zwaarste storm sinds 1990 |url=https://nos.nl/artikel/567910-zwaarste-storm-sinds-1990.html |access-date=25 January 2020 |work=nos.nl |date=28 October 2013 |language=nl}}</ref> 12 France,<ref>{{cite news |title=Daria le 25 janvier 1990 – Tempêtes en France métropolitaine |url=http://tempetes.meteo.fr/spip.php?article90 |access-date=25 January 2020 |work=tempetes.meteo.fr}}</ref> |
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| areas affected = [[Ireland]], [[United Kingdom]], [[France]], [[Belgium]], [[Netherlands]], [[West Germany]], [[East Germany]], [[Denmark]] |
| areas affected = [[Ireland]], [[United Kingdom]], [[France]], [[Belgium]], [[Netherlands]], [[West Germany]], [[East Germany]], [[Denmark]] |
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}} |
}} |
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The '''Burns' Day Storm''' (also known as '''Cyclone Daria''') was an extremely violent windstorm that took place on 25–26 January 1990 over [[North-Western Europe]]. It is one of the strongest [[European windstorm]]s on record and caused many fatalities in the UK and Europe. This storm has received different names, as there was no official list of such events in Europe at the time.<ref>{{cite web|title=Seasonal predictability of European wind storms|url=http://www.ecmwf.int/newsevents/meetings/forecast_products_user/Presentations2008/Renggli.pdf| |
The '''Burns' Day Storm''' (also known as '''Cyclone Daria''') was an extremely violent windstorm that took place on 25–26 January 1990 over [[North-Western Europe]]. It is one of the strongest [[European windstorm]]s on record and caused many fatalities in the UK and Europe. This storm has received different names, as there was no official list of such events in Europe at the time.<ref>{{cite web|title=Seasonal predictability of European wind storms|url=http://www.ecmwf.int/newsevents/meetings/forecast_products_user/Presentations2008/Renggli.pdf|department=Institute of Meteorology|publisher=[[Free University of Berlin]]|access-date=21 March 2012|page=7|year=2008}}</ref> Starting on Burns Day, the birthday of the Scottish poet [[Robert Burns]], it caused widespread damage and [[hurricane]]-force winds over a wide area. |
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== Meteorological history == |
== Meteorological history == |
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The storm began as a [[cold front]] over the Northern Atlantic Ocean on 23 January. By 24 January, it had a minimum central [[Atmospheric pressure|pressure]] of {{convert|992|mbar|inHg}} and began to undergo [[explosive cyclogenesis]], which was sometimes referred to as a weather bomb.<ref>{{cite web|title=Daria le 25 janvier 1990 |
The storm began as a [[cold front]] over the Northern Atlantic Ocean on 23 January. By 24 January, it had a minimum central [[Atmospheric pressure|pressure]] of {{convert|992|mbar|inHg}} and began to undergo [[explosive cyclogenesis]], which was sometimes referred to as a weather bomb.<ref>{{cite web|title=Daria le 25 janvier 1990 – Tempêtes en France métropolitaine|url=http://tempetes.meteofrance.fr/Daria-le-25-janvier-1990.html|website=tempetes.meteofrance.fr|publisher=Météo-France|access-date=5 November 2017|language=fr-FR|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107022827/http://tempetes.meteofrance.fr/Daria-le-25-janvier-1990.html|archive-date=7 November 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref> It made landfall on the morning of 25 January over Ireland. It then tracked over to [[Ayrshire]] in Scotland. The lowest pressure of {{convert|949|mbar|inHg|abbr=on}} was estimated near [[Edinburgh]] around 16:00. After hitting the United Kingdom, the storm tracked rapidly east towards [[Denmark]] causing major damage and a further 30 deaths in the [[Netherlands]] and [[Belgium]].<ref name="McCallum" /> |
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===Winds=== |
===Winds=== |
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The strongest sustained winds recorded were between {{convert|70|and|75|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}, comparable to a weak Category 1 hurricane or Hurricane-force 12 on the [[Beaufort Scale]]. Strong gusts of up to {{convert|104|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} were reported, which caused the most extensive damage. The [[Great Storm of 1987]] contained considerably higher wind speeds across every parameter but affected a smaller area of the UK |
The strongest sustained winds recorded were between {{convert|70|and|75|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}, comparable to a weak Category 1 hurricane or Hurricane-force 12 on the [[Beaufort Scale]]. Strong gusts of up to {{convert|104|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} were reported, which caused the most extensive damage. The [[Great Storm of 1987]] contained considerably higher wind speeds across every parameter but affected a smaller area of the UK; both highest recorded sustained wind speeds of 86 mph and highest gust of 135 mph, for example. Sustained periods of high gust speeds were also far higher in 1987. However, during the 1987 storm, many anemometers stopped recording because of power outages, breakages by the excess wind speeds and measurement maxima being exceeded. By 1990, the meteorological community had newer devices that remained independent of external power and could measure higher wind speeds. The general opinion is that wind speeds measured during the Burns' Day Storm provide an accurate picture, but there is a tendency to downplay windspeeds from the 1987 storm because of the patchy data available. In the 1987 storm, it was the counties of Sussex, Surrey, Kent and Essex (i.e. the SE of England) which were worst hit and suffered the most damage. A Met Office forecaster the |
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previous day, [[Michael Fish]], notoriously said he had assured a lady enquirer that "there was not going to be a 'hurricane'". |
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===Forecasting=== |
===Forecasting=== |
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The Burns' Day Storm of 1990 has been given as an example of when the [[Met Office]] "got the prediction right".<ref>{{cite news|last=Adams|first=Tim|title=Met Office forecasts storm warnings over its accuracy|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/feb/21/met-office-forecasts-accuracy|access-date=9 February 2013|newspaper=The Observer|date=21 February 2010}}</ref> The model forecast hinged on observations from two ships in the Atlantic near the developing storm the day before it reached the UK.<ref name="Heming" >{{cite journal|last=Heming|first=J.T.|title=The impact of surface and radiosonde observations from two Atlantic ships on a numerical weather prediction model forecast for the storm of 25 January 1990.|journal=The Meteorological Magazine|year=1990|volume=119|pages=249–259|url=https://digital.nmla.metoffice.gov.uk/IO_cf566ecc-52f5-4347-98fa-0ca8720a572f/}}</ref> |
The Burns' Day Storm of 1990 has been given as an example of when the [[Met Office]] "got the prediction right".<ref>{{cite news|last=Adams|first=Tim|title=Met Office forecasts storm warnings over its accuracy|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/feb/21/met-office-forecasts-accuracy|access-date=9 February 2013|newspaper=The Observer|date=21 February 2010}}</ref> The model forecast hinged on observations from two ships in the Atlantic near the developing storm the day before it reached the UK.<ref name="Heming" >{{cite journal|last=Heming|first=J.T.|title=The impact of surface and radiosonde observations from two Atlantic ships on a numerical weather prediction model forecast for the storm of 25 January 1990.|journal=The Meteorological Magazine|year=1990|volume=119|pages=249–259|url=https://digital.nmla.metoffice.gov.uk/IO_cf566ecc-52f5-4347-98fa-0ca8720a572f/}}</ref> |
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During the day of the storm, the [[Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute]] (KNMI) increased warnings to force 11 and eventually to hurricane force 12. It conducted research that most of the general public could not understand the severity of the warnings. The storm has led to more awareness and understanding of storminess among the public by the KNMI, which started a teletext page and the introduction of special warnings for extreme weather events in reaction to these findings.<ref>{{cite web|title=Nader Verklaard Zwaarste storm in decennia|url=http://www.knmi.nl/cms/content/75142/zwaarste_storm_in_decennia|publisher=KMNI|access-date=9 February 2013}}</ref> |
During the day of the storm, the [[Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute]] (KNMI) increased warnings to force 11 and eventually to hurricane force 12. It conducted research that showed that most of the general public could not understand the severity of the warnings. The storm has led to more awareness and understanding of storminess among the public by the KNMI, which started a teletext page and the introduction of special warnings for extreme weather events in reaction to these findings.<ref>{{cite web|title=Nader Verklaard Zwaarste storm in decennia|url=http://www.knmi.nl/cms/content/75142/zwaarste_storm_in_decennia|publisher=KMNI|access-date=9 February 2013}}</ref> |
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== Impacts == |
== Impacts == |
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Casualties were much higher than those of the [[Great Storm of 1987]] because the storm hit during the daytime. There were 47 deaths in the UK, most caused by collapsing buildings or falling debris.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Verasamy |first1=Lucy |title=Remembering the Burns Day storm of 1990 |url=https://www.itv.com/news/2015-01-23/remembering-the-burns-day-storm-of-1990 |
Casualties were much higher than those of the [[Great Storm of 1987]] because the storm hit during the daytime. There were 47 deaths in the UK, most caused by collapsing buildings or falling debris.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Verasamy |first1=Lucy |title=Remembering the Burns Day storm of 1990 |url=https://www.itv.com/news/2015-01-23/remembering-the-burns-day-storm-of-1990 |publisher=ITV Consumer Limited |access-date=6 September 2023}}</ref> In one case in [[Sussex]], a class of children was evacuated just minutes before their school building collapsed. The actor [[Gorden Kaye]] was also injured during the storm when a plank of an advertising board was blown through his car's windscreen.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/january/25/newsid_3420000/3420797.stm|title=1990: Children killed in devastating storm|work=On This Day|publisher=BBC News|access-date=16 October 2017}}</ref> The storm caused extensive damage, with approximately 3 million trees downed, [[electric power|power]] disrupted to over 500,000 homes and severe [[flooding]] in England and [[West Germany]]. The storm cost insurers in the UK£3.37 billion, the UK's most expensive weather event to insurers.<ref>{{cite news |title=UK storm payout 'may hit £350m' the storm was really really big|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6380123.stm |publisher=BBC News |date=20 February 2007 |access-date=16 October 2017 |quote=High winds that hit the country in the first few weeks of 1990 – costing insurers £3.37bn – remain the most expensive for insurers. }}</ref> |
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==Highest wind gust per country== |
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{| class="wikitable sortable" |
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|- |
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! Country |
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! Highest Gust |
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! Location |
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|- |
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| {{Flag|Ireland}} |
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| 168 km/h |
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| [[Dunmore Head]] |
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|- |
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| {{Flag|United Kingdom}} |
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| 172 km/h |
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| [[Aberporth]] & [[Gwennap Head]] |
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|- |
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| {{Flag|France}} |
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| 164 km/h |
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| [[Sangatte]] |
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|- |
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| {{Flag|Belgium}} |
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| 168 km/h |
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| [[Beauvechain]] |
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|- |
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| {{Flag|Luxembourg}} |
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| 162 km/h |
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| [[Wincrange]] |
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|- |
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| {{Flag|Netherlands}} |
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| 159 km/h |
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| [[IJmuiden]] & [[Westkapelle, Netherlands|Westkapelle]] |
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|- |
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| {{Flag|Germany}} |
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| 230 km/h |
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| [[Brocken]] |
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|- |
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| {{Flag|Denmark}} |
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| 166 km/h |
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| [[Gedser Odde]] & [[Nykøbing Falster]] |
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|} |
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==See also== |
==See also== |
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* [[Vivian (storm)]] 25–28 February 1990, later ''Wiebke ''. This is called the ''[[European windstorm#Severe storms since 1950|1990 storm series]]''. |
* [[Vivian (storm)]] 25–28 February 1990, later ''Wiebke ''. This is called the ''[[European windstorm#Severe storms since 1950|1990 storm series]]''. |
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* [[List of natural disasters in Great Britain and Ireland]] |
* [[List of natural disasters in Great Britain and Ireland]] |
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* [[Great Storm of 1987]] |
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* [[European windstorm]] |
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==References== |
==References== |
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[[Category:Weather events in Ireland|Burns' Day Storm]] |
[[Category:Weather events in Ireland|Burns' Day Storm]] |
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[[Category:Weather events in Germany|Burns' Day Storm]] |
[[Category:Weather events in Germany|Burns' Day Storm]] |
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[[Category:Weather events in |
[[Category:Weather events in France|Burns' Day Storm]] |
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[[Category:European windstorms|Burns' Day Storm]] |
[[Category:European windstorms|Burns' Day Storm]] |
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[[Category:1990 meteorology]] |
[[Category:1990 meteorology]] |
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[[Category:Weather events in Denmark|Storm]] |
[[Category:Weather events in Denmark|Storm]] |
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[[Category:Weather events in the Netherlands|Storm]] |
[[Category:Weather events in the Netherlands|Storm]] |
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[[Category:1990 in France]] |
[[Category:January 1990 events in France]] |
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[[Category:1990 in Belgium]] |
[[Category:1990 in Belgium]] |
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[[Category:1990 in Denmark]] |
[[Category:1990 in Denmark]] |
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[[Category:1990 in the Netherlands]] |
[[Category:1990 in the Netherlands]] |
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[[Category:1990 disasters in |
[[Category:1990 disasters in France]] |
Latest revision as of 15:40, 15 December 2024
This article needs additional citations for verification. (December 2010) |
Type | European windstorm, extratropical, extratropical storm surge |
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Formed | 23 January 1990[1] |
Dissipated | 26 January 1990 |
Highest winds |
|
Highest gust | 124 kn (230 km/h; 143 mph), Brocken[2] |
Lowest pressure | 949 hPa (28.0 inHg)[1] |
Fatalities | 47 UK,[3] 17 Netherlands,[4] 12 France,[5] |
Areas affected | Ireland, United Kingdom, France, Belgium, Netherlands, West Germany, East Germany, Denmark |
The Burns' Day Storm (also known as Cyclone Daria) was an extremely violent windstorm that took place on 25–26 January 1990 over North-Western Europe. It is one of the strongest European windstorms on record and caused many fatalities in the UK and Europe. This storm has received different names, as there was no official list of such events in Europe at the time.[6] Starting on Burns Day, the birthday of the Scottish poet Robert Burns, it caused widespread damage and hurricane-force winds over a wide area.
Meteorological history
[edit]The storm began as a cold front over the Northern Atlantic Ocean on 23 January. By 24 January, it had a minimum central pressure of 992 millibars (29.3 inHg) and began to undergo explosive cyclogenesis, which was sometimes referred to as a weather bomb.[7] It made landfall on the morning of 25 January over Ireland. It then tracked over to Ayrshire in Scotland. The lowest pressure of 949 mbar (28.0 inHg) was estimated near Edinburgh around 16:00. After hitting the United Kingdom, the storm tracked rapidly east towards Denmark causing major damage and a further 30 deaths in the Netherlands and Belgium.[1]
Winds
[edit]The strongest sustained winds recorded were between 70 and 75 mph (113 and 121 km/h), comparable to a weak Category 1 hurricane or Hurricane-force 12 on the Beaufort Scale. Strong gusts of up to 104 mph (167 km/h) were reported, which caused the most extensive damage. The Great Storm of 1987 contained considerably higher wind speeds across every parameter but affected a smaller area of the UK; both highest recorded sustained wind speeds of 86 mph and highest gust of 135 mph, for example. Sustained periods of high gust speeds were also far higher in 1987. However, during the 1987 storm, many anemometers stopped recording because of power outages, breakages by the excess wind speeds and measurement maxima being exceeded. By 1990, the meteorological community had newer devices that remained independent of external power and could measure higher wind speeds. The general opinion is that wind speeds measured during the Burns' Day Storm provide an accurate picture, but there is a tendency to downplay windspeeds from the 1987 storm because of the patchy data available. In the 1987 storm, it was the counties of Sussex, Surrey, Kent and Essex (i.e. the SE of England) which were worst hit and suffered the most damage. A Met Office forecaster the previous day, Michael Fish, notoriously said he had assured a lady enquirer that "there was not going to be a 'hurricane'".
Forecasting
[edit]The Burns' Day Storm of 1990 has been given as an example of when the Met Office "got the prediction right".[8] The model forecast hinged on observations from two ships in the Atlantic near the developing storm the day before it reached the UK.[9]
During the day of the storm, the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI) increased warnings to force 11 and eventually to hurricane force 12. It conducted research that showed that most of the general public could not understand the severity of the warnings. The storm has led to more awareness and understanding of storminess among the public by the KNMI, which started a teletext page and the introduction of special warnings for extreme weather events in reaction to these findings.[10]
Impacts
[edit]Casualties were much higher than those of the Great Storm of 1987 because the storm hit during the daytime. There were 47 deaths in the UK, most caused by collapsing buildings or falling debris.[11] In one case in Sussex, a class of children was evacuated just minutes before their school building collapsed. The actor Gorden Kaye was also injured during the storm when a plank of an advertising board was blown through his car's windscreen.[12] The storm caused extensive damage, with approximately 3 million trees downed, power disrupted to over 500,000 homes and severe flooding in England and West Germany. The storm cost insurers in the UK£3.37 billion, the UK's most expensive weather event to insurers.[13]
Highest wind gust per country
[edit]Country | Highest Gust | Location |
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Ireland | 168 km/h | Dunmore Head |
United Kingdom | 172 km/h | Aberporth & Gwennap Head |
France | 164 km/h | Sangatte |
Belgium | 168 km/h | Beauvechain |
Luxembourg | 162 km/h | Wincrange |
Netherlands | 159 km/h | IJmuiden & Westkapelle |
Germany | 230 km/h | Brocken |
Denmark | 166 km/h | Gedser Odde & Nykøbing Falster |
See also
[edit]- Vivian (storm) 25–28 February 1990, later Wiebke . This is called the 1990 storm series.
- List of natural disasters in Great Britain and Ireland
References
[edit]- ^ a b c McCallum, E. (1990). "The Burns' Day Storm, 25 January 1990". Weather. 45 (5): 166–173. Bibcode:1990Wthr...45..166M. doi:10.1002/j.1477-8696.1990.tb05607.x.
- ^ "Weather observations from German weather stations".
- ^ "Burns' Day Storm – 25 January 1990" (PDF). Met Office. 15 April 2016. Retrieved 20 January 2020.
- ^ "Zwaarste storm sinds 1990". nos.nl (in Dutch). 28 October 2013. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
- ^ "Daria le 25 janvier 1990 – Tempêtes en France métropolitaine". tempetes.meteo.fr. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
- ^ "Seasonal predictability of European wind storms" (PDF). Institute of Meteorology. Free University of Berlin. 2008. p. 7. Retrieved 21 March 2012.
- ^ "Daria le 25 janvier 1990 – Tempêtes en France métropolitaine". tempetes.meteofrance.fr (in French). Météo-France. Archived from the original on 7 November 2017. Retrieved 5 November 2017.
- ^ Adams, Tim (21 February 2010). "Met Office forecasts storm warnings over its accuracy". The Observer. Retrieved 9 February 2013.
- ^ Heming, J.T. (1990). "The impact of surface and radiosonde observations from two Atlantic ships on a numerical weather prediction model forecast for the storm of 25 January 1990". The Meteorological Magazine. 119: 249–259.
- ^ "Nader Verklaard Zwaarste storm in decennia". KMNI. Retrieved 9 February 2013.
- ^ Verasamy, Lucy. "Remembering the Burns Day storm of 1990". ITV Consumer Limited. Retrieved 6 September 2023.
- ^ "1990: Children killed in devastating storm". On This Day. BBC News. Retrieved 16 October 2017.
- ^ "UK storm payout 'may hit £350m' the storm was really really big". BBC News. 20 February 2007. Retrieved 16 October 2017.
High winds that hit the country in the first few weeks of 1990 – costing insurers £3.37bn – remain the most expensive for insurers.
External links
[edit]- Weather events in Ireland
- Weather events in Germany
- Weather events in France
- European windstorms
- 1990 meteorology
- 1990 disasters in the United Kingdom
- Robert Burns
- Power outages in the United Kingdom
- January 1990 events in Europe
- January 1990 events in the United Kingdom
- Weather events in the United Kingdom
- Weather events in Belgium
- Weather events in Denmark
- Weather events in the Netherlands
- January 1990 events in France
- 1990 in Belgium
- 1990 in Denmark
- 1990 in the Netherlands
- 1990 disasters in France