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6 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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What was the cause of the storm? |
A depression formed over the Bay of Biscay as SW winds (warm, wet air from Atlantic) met NE winds (cold air from the Pole). Depression deepened rapidly due to unusually warm sea temperatures in the BoB and a steep temperature gradient between the two air masses. The polar jet stream was located further south than normal so the depression formed over southern England rather than northern Scotland. V Low pressure of 953mb led to strong winds. The storm hit on 15th October 1987. |
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What were the social impacts? |
18 people died in England, 4 in France. 15 million trees blew down onto roads and transport links- causing severe delay. Power and phone lines were knocked down. 15,000 homes without telephone connection and 100,000s no electricity for more than 24 hours. |
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What were the economic impacts? |
Black Monday- stock market trading suspended. Actually saved UK from an economic crash. Insurance claims totalled £1.4 billion. Transport disrupted Gatwick Airport closed- lost power Thousands of boats wrecked Fire Brigade had 6,000 calls in 24 hours |
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What were the environmental impacts? |
15 million trees blown down Some areas lost 97% of their trees- loss of woodland habitat. |
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What were the responses? |
Emergency authorities dealt with huge numbers of calls. Phone companies and electricity boards worked around the clock to repair and replace equipment until phone lines and power were restored. Highways agencies cleared roads and railway companies cleared railways. Forestry workers began collecting the fallen trees (around 4 million m3 of timber). Forestry Commission established Forest Windblow Action Committee to help woodland owners recover fallen trees and advice on replanting. |
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How and why did the Met Office respond to the storm? |
They were criticised for how they forecast the storm and how they issued warnings- e.g severe storm warnings were only issued about 3 hours before the storm and the Ministry of Defence were only warned that military assistance might be needed on 16th October. So, the Met Office were given funding for improvement: 1. Development of a supercomputer 2. Increase in use of satellite information, ships and aircraft. 3. New forecasting models 4. International cooperation in global forecasting 5. Govt established a national severe weather warning service to improve the way they are made and issued. |
