Dear panick stricken friends.
The storm will be severe but not as severe as 1987, for two reasons, firstly the predicted wind speeds are not as high as 1987 but also the trees have mostly lost their leaves, and so the number of trees blown over should be less. True the ground is saturated by all the rain we have had, but it was the trees in full leaf that was a major factor in them being blown over.
The track of the storm is further north than 1987 and will affect more towns and cities.
Wind is not discresionary. If there is a weakness in a fixing, or the weight to surface area ratio is unable to resist the wind uplift suction force, then what ever it is will be blown away, and may do secondary damage, like a chimney pot bouncing down the roof and landing on your car. Cars in garages are no safer than those standing outside, as the light roofs over garages have been known to colapse inwards.
The people who were killed by the 1987 storm were all tree related incidents.
I have made a living for the last 25 years fom the effects of wind so, I have cleared my diary and if it is anything like 1987, I should be a busy boy.
Chris Thomas
