Although the calendar says late May, the weather was more like November today. After lashing rain overnight, the morning cleared to a rising gale. Winds got up to 40 mph, gusting to 70 mph; but down at Malin Head, the northwestern cape of Ireland, there was a 60 mph storm, with gusts to 80 mph. In central Scotland, countless trees and power cables were brought down, leading to serious travel disruption and powercuts. Here in Stornoway, we lost power between 7.15 and 7.50. One person died when his vehicle was crushed by a falling tree. Ferries were cancelled up and down the west coast, although our ferry ploughed on through the force 8 winds, eventually arriving at 9.30 this evening, more than an hour behind schedule.
Although the weather was severe here, it was nothing as compared to the tornado that devastated Joplin, MO, in the USA. More than 100 people are now known to have been killed, and more than 1000 injured. The town is largely destroyed.
So Obama sipped a pint in a pub in Ireland. Volcanic ash clouds prompted his early departure for England. Tomorrow, there will be no flights from Stornoway Airport in the morning, or from any other hub outside the Central Belt [Glasgow / Edinburgh]. We're back to April last year, in other words. Hope this stops soon; I'm due to fly in a fortnight's time.
Comment posted on behalf of Sybil
ReplyDeleteI am sorry that you are having such awful weather...Mary and I watch the weather on teh TV and always speak about you when we see the lashing rain you are forecast to have ..Thankfully we are still having summer down here. Spent about 2 hours sitting out yesterday and although it was windy we are a bit sheltered on the deck..it is lovely there watching and listning to the hoops of laughter from the kids rolling down the back on the rec.don't know their folks will ever get the grass marks out of their shirts which were white..once...
I am having difficulty getting on to my blog..just won't come up... any ideas ? hope bloger aint going the way of AOL
Sybil