11 MORE WILD STORMS ON WAY
Gales and snow to last all winter
A RELENTLESS series of storms will ravage Britain before the end of winter.
After the battering so far this autumn from storms Aileen and Brian, 11 further bouts of severe wind, rain and even snow now threaten chaos over
the next two months, according to forecasters.
The warning comes as the nation cleans up after a trail of destruction was left by storm Brian’s weekend assault.
Gusts of more than 80mph were recorded on the Isle of Wight over the past two days with winds topping 70mph elsewhere. The storm yesterday headed off into the North Sea leaving a blustery but more settled day for many.
The Environment Agency kept 36 flood alerts and 28 more serious flood warnings in place as winds continued to clash with high tides.
WeatherOnline forecaster John Ejdowski said high pressure will build midweek giving a much more settled outlook.
Unpredictable
While the coming week will be calmer and warmer, the next major storm could be around the corner. Independent forecaster AccuWeather said Scotland especially will bear the brunt of a choppy autumn.
However, unpredictable seasonal storms can swerve at the last minute, hitting broader swathes of the country.
AccuWeather forecaster Tyler Roys said: “Our forecast is for 10 to 13 storms to be named by the Met Office this autumn and winter. We expect an active storm period until January, with further storms until April.
“Many storm centres are forecast to pass just north of the UK with a battering of rain in Scotland each time they pass through.”
Storm Brian was the second “home-grown” named storm of the season following Aileen which hit last month. It differed from former hurricane Ophelia, which hit last week, as it formed over the northern Atlantic instead of the tropics.
Storm Brian led to road closures and transport delays particularly in western parts of Britain and across Ireland.
It was named by the Irish meteorological service Met Eireann in a joint initiative with the UK Met Office.
The next 11 storms will be called Caroline followed by Dylan, Eleanor, Fionn, Georgina, Hector, Iona, James, Karen, Larry, Maeve and Niall.