Thursday 15 January 2015

A Southeaster for a Change

The wind backed into the southeast last night and, by early evening, was blowing a full gale.  This was the front edge of a nasty little depression coming in off the Atlantic (see yesterday's post).  As predicted, it brought thunder and lightning and, because the wind was coming from a different direction from the earlier storms, further damage to trees, sheds and people's roofs.  Motorists crossing higher ground, such as along the road from Caim to Branault, experienced blizzard conditions.

It was a very intense depression: by this morning, as the centre passed over, the barometric pressure had fallen to 962mbar, the lowest we've recorded in the last six years.

The associated fronts have dumped 35mm of rain on us in the 24 hours to 8.00am this morning.  By this morning, the burns on the far side of the Sound, which normally don't show as they tumble over the cliffs, had become white waterfalls.

As the depression passed this morning, it brought a short spell of very windy and wet weather with more thunder and lightning.  Sanna lost its power, and the fronts deposited a further 10mm of rain in a couple of hours and brought gusts to gale force.  Picture shows Grianan farmhouse in Ormsaigmore at ten thirtyg.

The wind has now moved round into the southwest.  More rain is forecast, turning to snow over the next two days as the wind moves into the north.  Then, on Sunday, the sun's going to come out, and by early next week, we'll be enjoying a fine and cold few days.  Perhaps.

2 comments:

  1. Not so far from Kilchoan I have a old family heirloom ..a clockwork barograph. It has ancient papers that are tabulated in inches of mercury. I don't wind it often,so it does not create a full record now.. just points. When I woke yesterday morning,it looked broken. The nib on the pointer had dropped below the base of the drum.. well below 28 inches of mercury. ....It has never done that through all the decades it has greeted me each morning. That was some low !

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  2. Those old barometers are wonderful machines.
    Tobermory RNLI lifeboat station recorded 951mbar on their barometer. I have suspected that mine is recording about 10 points too high. Jon

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