‘HEY JUDE! DON’T MAKE IT BAD…’ A HURRICANE HITS THE UK

Today is the Feast of St Jude. Patron Saint of lost causes and (more modernly) depression… and, some suggest, IBISES.

It is also the day of the most violent storm to hit the UK since 1987, with hurricane force winds recorded on the south coast (Force 12 on the BEAUFORT SCALE) and plenty of Force 11 ‘violent storm’ readings. There has been widespread damage to trees, cars and property, with 2 deaths so far reported, and one person missing at sea. Public transport is returning to normal, after the wholesale cancelation of flights, trains and other public transport services. 300,000 homes have had power outages. I fully realise that Abaconians have far more frequent and far worse hurricanes visited on them, the latest being Sandy last year and Irene the previous year. This is in no way a competition, but I thought some images from the UK over the last 24 hours or so might be of interest and dispel the notion that Britain is a country of benign 365/24/7 soft drizzle and gentle rain…

Brighton Pier, Sussex

In 1987 a popular BBC weatherman had the misfortune to say on air “Earlier on today, apparently, a woman rang the BBC and said she heard there was a hurricane on the way… well, if you’re watching, don’t worry, there isn’t!”. That evening, the worst storm to hit South East England for three centuries caused record damage and killed 19 people. In contrast, the weather agencies were ahead of the game on this occasion, so Britain was well-prepared for the onslaught…

The storm looms over the Dorset and Sussex coasts…

The whole length of the south coast takes a hit, from Cornwall to Kent

And the coast of Wales

Inland, there is damage to building and property. This crane fell onto a Government building in London

A large number of trees have fallen, many onto cars in residential areas

Schools have not been closed, but some pupils needed to take an unorthodox route

More minor incidents involved some garden trashing – dammit, that’s our garden…

These 2 photos were taken on the Chesil Beach in Dorset, where Mrs Harbour and I were a couple of weeks ago, and which I posted about on my companion non-Abaco blog HERE. Below them is a photo of the same location I took then, for comparison.

The highest wind velocity, around 100 MPH, was recorded at the Needles, a well-known geographical landmark on  the west side of the Isle of Wight in the English Channel. Here is a photo I took there a year ago, when things were calmer. 

NEW PHOTOGRAPHS FROM CORNWALL CAN BE FOUND AT STORMY MONDAY (to continue the musical theme)

Saint Jude, St Peter’s Rome

CREDITS Many & various: news agencies; BBC; folk who have uploaded their pics onto news sites, both national & local, for wider viewing; anyone not covered by the aforementioned...