hollywoodtone.blogspot.com UK braced for a New Years Day storm, bringing more flooding
hollywoodtone.blogspot.com UK braced for a New Years Day storm, bringing more flooding
Parts of the UK experienced severe flooding over the Christmas period and the bad news is that bad weather is set to return as Britain welcomes in 2014.
There was little Christmas cheer in storm damaged parts of the UK December 2013 as strong winds and floodwater caused chaos. Power lines were downed and some households had no electricity from Christmas Eve until well after the traditional Christmas holidays. Insurance companies will face huge claims but sadly for some residents there will be no "help out" by insurers. Those homes which have been hit by flooding previously in recent years are often unable to get home and contents insurance, unless they can pay super-high premiums. As those already hit count the cost, news that gales and torrential rain will usher in the New Year for most parts of Britain will add to people's woes. According to the Guardian there will be no weather respite as "a fresh storm sweeps in from the Atlantic". "There will be no letup for the storm-hit south-east of England as it prepares to face the worst of further heavy downpours on New Year's Day." In early December the east coast of England was warned to batten down the hatches as a tidal storm surge was predicted. In the end it was not as damaging as predicted, nor the 1953 tidal storm surge, but it sill caused flooding to some properties and at least two people died. Autumn and winter 2013 in the UK has been a strange mixed bag of weather. Some days it has been mild meaning summer flowers are still surviving in many gardens. However, the UK has had some fierce storms such as the St Jude storm of late October. Thousands of homes were left without power following this storm also. If weather forecasters have it right Scotland will have a relatively calm New Year's Eve and day, with just light showers. Good news for the thousands of Hogmanay revelers who will visit Scotland, and in particular Edinburgh, this week. However, Sunday night heavy rain caused some flooding in Scotland. In the unlikely event that Hogmanay celebrations are canceled it will be a last minute affair, and when all else fails. Monday engineers are trying to reconnect those homes in England still without electricity from last week's bad weather. The UK government's emergency committee, COBRA, met Sunday and has sent a clear message to power companies and local councils. It is, do your job. The Guardian reports:
The environment secretary, Owen Paterson, rebuked some energy firms he said had "let their customers down badly" by responding slowly to blackouts that affected 300,000 homes.
"It seems obvious at this stage that they let too many of their staff go away for the Christmas holiday, they didn't have enough people manning the call centres and that wasn't acceptable," Paterson told BBC Breakfast.The crucial time will be from 6am GMT onwards on New Years Day. A storm will sweep quickly across parts of the UK bringing strong winds and heavy gales which may cause travel disruption and yet more flooding. Happy New Year from the British weather!
hollywoodtone.blogspot.com UK braced for a New Years Day storm, bringing more flooding