By Paul Homewood
h/t MrGrimNasty
The Met Office has been bigging up Storm Francis!
Given that these “records” only cover a tiny part of the country, and are only for August, the whole thing is rather a storm in a tea cup!
Interestingly, if we look at the example of Pershore, we find wind speeds (instead of gusts) peaking at only 25 mph, which is categorised as a strong breeze on the Beaufort Scale:
https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/observations/gcq82y60q
On the exposed coast at Pembrey Sands, wind speeds got up to 51 mph, a Force 9 gale.
https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/observations/gchyp0tev
To confuse things, ITV are reporting that Vyrnwy and Aberdaron are only the highest gusts since 1994 and 1996 respectively. It is not clear whether this is when the stations opened, or if stronger winds were recorded then.
As we know, these are not representative sites. Aberdaron is at the top of a 300 ft cliff at the tip of the Llyn Peninsula, while Vyrnwy is a thousand foot up in Snowdonia. Just as with Honister Pass, the Met Office should not be using such sites as being in any way representative of the country as whole.
Of course, wet and windy Augusts are hardly anything new, as the Met Office knew back in 1917:
https://digital.nmla.metoffice.gov.uk/IO_0217b9cd-a4e1-477a-a8bb-64c33a3c3999/
August 1917 was actually the second wettest August in England – only August 1912 was wetter.
Note the reference to Force 8 gales on 1st August, and Force 10 at Dungeness on the 24th.
It is nigh impossible for anybody to comprehend nowadays that back in August 1917 the Battle of Passchendaele had just begun, amidst such heavy rainfall that the whole battlefield became a deadly quagmire.
Instead they simply obsess about a slightly warmer climate.