Stunning video footage from storms Dudley, Eunice and Franklin shows trucks tipping over, planes with shaky landings and bridges being destroyed by floodwaters. And it's not over yet.
Published Feb. 21, 2022 12:46 PM EST | Updated Feb. 22, 2022 8:58 AM EST
Storm Franklin blasted parts of the United Kingdom and Ireland with high winds and torrential rainfall just days after Storm Eunice's record-breaking winds and extraordinarily high waves caused significant damage across Northern Europe and killed at least 16, according to reporting from Euronews.
Just two days before Eunice struck the region, Storm Dudley blew through the same area. Authorities blamed Dudley for several fatalities across Germany and Poland.
The effects of Franklin are likely testing the patience of many in Northern Europe, who have now seen three intense storms in less than a week -- the first time this has happened since the United Kingdom's Meteorological Office began naming storms in 2015, according to AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Tyler Roys.
"These back-to-back-to-back storms are known as clusters. These clusters tend to happen in a short period of time. In this case, they happened over the course of six days," Roys said, adding that each storm brought its own unique set of impacts.
Floodwaters caused by Franklin tore apart a bridge in Leeds, England, and wind gusts of up to 87 miles per hour were recorded on the Isle of Wight, according to the BBC. ABC News reported that at least two deaths had been attributed to Franklin.
Dashcam footage shows the moments strong winds from Storm Eunice caused a large truck to flip over on a highway in Bicester, England, on Feb. 18.
As Franklin was striking the island late Sunday into Monday, more than 33,000 people in the United Kingdom were still waiting to get their power back from the dynamic duo of storms Dudley and Eunice.
"If Franklin did not happen, the damage would have not been compounded," Roys explained. "By the time the third windstorm came around, the ground was saturated, damage [had] already occurred, [and there were] travel delays all over the place," Roys said.
With Dudley, the first of the trio of storms, wind gusts of 70 to 80 mph were reported in locations of the U.K., with major cities like Edinburgh and London spared with weaker gusts, which clocked in at 40 mph and 44 mph respectively. The impactful storm halted train service for portions of Scotland, Wales and England Wednesday after the winds downed trees and power lines over the tracks, according to The Associated Press.
A storm has blown a roof of an apartment house on a street in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, Thursday, Feb. 17, 2022. Meteorologists warned Thursday that northern Europe could be battered by a series of storms over the coming days after strong winds swept across Germany, Denmark, Poland and the Czech Republic overnight, toppling trees and causing widespread delays to rail and air traffic.
The middle storm had the most widespread and severe impacts. As Storm Eunice moved over the United Kingdom and Ireland, it became readily apparent that its winds were much more significant than Dudley's. For the first time ever, an extremely rare red weather warning, which means there “is a danger to life,” was issued for the city of London, ITV reported, citing the risk of dangerously high winds.
"Eunice brought snow and sleet to parts of northwestern Ireland, Northern Ireland, northern England and southern Scotland, even to the valley areas," Roys said, adding that Eunice was unusual because it brought some of the highest wind gusts into major metropolitan areas like London, which made for incredibly shaky plane landings. Eunice also left the famous Tan Hill Inn blanketed under a fresh coat of snow. The tavern, known for being the country's highest-elevation pub, made international headlines late last year when a heavy snowstorm trapped dozens of patrons along with an Oasis cover band inside for days.
High winds of 37 mph led to a scary scene in Kraków, Poland, when a crane came tumbling down at a construction site on Feb. 17. Two fatalities and two injuries were reported.
On Feb. 17 in Krakow, Poland, a crane was toppled, killing two, police said. The Needles, a tourist attraction on the Isle of Wight in southern England, reported a wind gust of 122 mph Friday morning, which the U.K. Met Office preliminarily confirmed as the highest wind gust ever measured in England. For comparison, a Category 3 major hurricane in the Atlantic has sustained winds ranging from 111 to 120 mph.
Winds from Storm Eunice tore apart the fabric roof of London's O2 Arena and whipped up massive waves on Germany's Elbe River near the German city of Hamburg. The waves grew so intense that one crashed onto a commuter ferry, shattering its windows and injuring at least three people. In Denmark, however, runners didn't let the high winds and rain stop them from celebrating the city's light festival.
Unfortunately, the forecast for Northern Europe continues to look unsettled, with another storm set to hit parts of Scotland, Ireland and the United Kingdom on Thursday.
"Looking forward, there is a dynamic storm that is going to barrel into Scotland on Thursday, but in this process, it is going to be losing intensity. Therefore, the wind intensity is going to be 'light' compared to what was experienced across northwestern Ireland, Northern Ireland and western and southern Scotland," said Roys.
More to see:
For the latest weather news check back on AccuWeather.com. Watch the AccuWeather Network on DIRECTV, Frontier, Spectrum, fuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios. AccuWeather Now is now available on your preferred streaming platform.
No comments:
Post a Comment