United Kingdom, Ireland Face Damaging Wind Threat

By Kristina Pydynowski, Senior Meteorologist

September 14,2013; 5:29PM,EDT

 

 

A powerful storm is still set to sweep potentially damaging winds through the United Kingdom and Ireland Sunday through Monday.
The storm is capable of unleashing wind gusts of 80 to 110 kph (50 to 70 mph) from northwestern Ireland to Scotland. The winds will start to howl Saturday night with the strongest winds set to occur midday Sunday through Monday.
Northern and western coastal locations will be most susceptible to winds on the higher end of that range.
Such winds could lead to widespread tree damage and power outages, as well as minor structural damage. Additional damage will result if the trees land on structures and cars.

Wind gusts of 80 to 110 kph convert to 50 to 70 mph, while the range of 60 to 80 kph converts to 35 to 50 mph.
More sporadic tree damage and power outages could unfold in Dublin, London and across the rest of Ireland, England and Wales where gusts between 60 and 80 kph (35 and 50 mph) are expected.
Accompanying the storm will be periods of windswept rain across northern and western parts of Ireland, Northern Ireland and Scotland. Spottier gusty showers are expected elsewhere.
RELATED:
Europe Weather Center
United Kingdom Weather Center
Ireland Weather Center
It is unusually early for such a storm to be threatening the United Kingdom and Ireland, stated AccuWeather.com Senior Meteorologist Alan Reppert.
"Most of these stronger storms typically happen from October into the winter."
Strong wind gusts from the storm will not be limited to the United Kingdom and Ireland. Gusts between 50 and 65 kph (30 and 40 mph) could reach places from northern France to southern Norway on Sunday night.
The storm will slowly push into the North Sea for Monday into Tuesday as the system pushes southward. Winds by this time will be weaker, but there still could be wind gusts near the coast to between 50 and 65 kph (30 and 40 mph). Wind gusts of over 80 kph will be found near the coastline as it pushes slowly southward towards mainland Europe.
Tuesday is shaping up to be another breezy to windy day across the United Kingdom and Ireland due to the storm dropping south through the North Sea or as another system arrives from the Atlantic.