Weather early 2009

[Maggi Young]

 Too right, Jo, I could write a long list of those I know who have had their modems knocked out by thunder and lightning storms .     We unplug the TV etc and Microwave too. Can be an expensive mistake to leave them.. in money terms and in time and bother, as your son found ..... shouldn't you be showing the lad a bit more sympathy? .....or is his taste in music just so ghastly that it was a blessing to be shot of it ?

[Jo]

You got it Maggi,   His punk era as I recall 

[mark smyth]

133 MPH winds in Scotland yesterday 1mph les than hurricane speeds

[Jo]

Coo,  we have a largish elm down this morning, with all the rain making the ground soft I don't think it could cope.

[Anthony Darby]

Not here.

[Maggi Young]

Coo,  we have a largish elm down this morning, with all the rain making the ground soft I don't think it could cope.

 Bad news, Jo. Has it done a lot of damage to surrounding area/plants?  You seem to have really had the brunt of the storm down there... lucky escape for most of us in Scotland, I think .

[Maggi Young]

Seems it may have been worse in the west of Scotland.

Just got this from a new report......"A woman in her 30s was killed by the high winds in Northern Ireland when a tree fell on her car in Downpatrick, Co Down." ....... a tragedy which saddens me .......
and this ....
"Coastguards based on Scotland's Kintyre coast rescued a 22-year-old surfer after he drifted a mile out to sea in near-hurricane conditions"     ...... something which infuriates me.... what sort of fool goes surfing in such weather conditions? 

[mark smyth]

Many trees down over here and clutter on the roads

[David Nicholson]

It was very windy here last night but not as bad, I feel, as the weathermen had been telling us it would be, we have had much worse. All my fences still in situ but pots stacked on the patio waiting to be washed and put away are liberally spread throughout Ivybridge. Coming back home late this afternoon Tor Bay was full of shipping seeking shelter. Haven't seen a local news broadcast yet so don't know what the general effect of the weather has been.   

[johnw]

"Coastguards based on Scotland's Kintyre coast rescued a 22-year-old surfer after he drifted a mile out to sea in near-hurricane conditions"     ...... something which infuriates me.... what sort of fool goes surfing in such weather conditions? 

Maggi - I have two friends here who have sons that are surfers. One is sponsored by a surfboard company year round.  They catch the best waves in Hurricane season and in winter.  Seemingly intelligent fellows...on the street.



johnw

[Michael J Campbell]

Lightening struck a tree in the children's playground of a school a few miles from here. Destroyed all the electrics and badly damaged the school and six houses nearby. Nobody injured.

[mark smyth]

It's snowing heavily here right now. Hopefully tomorrow I can get photos of snowdrops in snow for this year's Christmas card.

[Maggi Young]

Having enjoyed two bright days here, though it rained last night and was very frosty all day today, we were feeling quite pleased with our weather... then I read about three people killled today in an avalanche in the Scottish mountains.... bad news indeed. The avalanche was on Buchaille Etive Mhor,  (3,352ft in height, known for its distinctive pyramidal shape)very popular for walkers, climbers and skiers.... nine people ( in two groups ) were caught up in the avalanche on the Coire Na Tulaich area of the mountain, at about noon today (Saturday 24th January)
The mountain report site gave the risk of avalanches in Glencoe as "considerable". Today's risk was rated as category three, on a scale of one to five.
It never pays to underestimate mountain risks   

[Anthony Darby]

A colleague is a rock climber and knows The Buchaile well and would agree with your last statement. There are no accidents in mountaineering, only mistakes. It pays to do your homework (see http://www.ochils.com/) I was at his (Johnny D - scroll down) 40th birthday bash at The Counting House in Edinburgh last Saturday. The rock climbing faternity know how to party! Fortunately I managed not to be in any of the pics, so far.

[Carol Shaw]

There are no accidents in mountaineering, only mistakes.

David & I were pretty serious mountaineers for years and personally I would say there are accidents and mistakes. The people who were avalanched yesterday on the Buchaille should not, IMHP, have been on the mountain there was a clear warning of a very high risk of avalanche... but at the end of the day it was their choice. However, we have set off in good weather in winter on a mountain to have the temperature suddenly rise by several degrees part way up a route - in those circumstances there is not a lot you can do. David has always said if he had started climbing when he was younger, and living near Sheffield, he would undoubtedly have killed himself!
Now we are older, probably no wiser, but not fit to do some of the things we used to... in fact our interest in the wee small flowers stems from our days on the mountains; needing an excuse to pause for breath I would say what's that flower to David... we got more and more interested and now we walk to be able to see the plants