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Smithy · 07-12-2011, 11:15 PM

http://www.clickgreen.org.uk/news/na...-heads-in.html

Quote:

The Met Office has this afternoon issued a red severe weather alert warning the public to take action as a massive hurricane-strength storm heads towards the UK.

The UK's strongest possible weather warning was broadcast as 86mph winds and a huge band of snow are predicted to batter northern parts of the UK, which according to the Met Office will “include some major population centres in Scotland”.

Wind speed above 74mph is categorised as a level one hurricane.

The highly destructive winds are forecast to sweep across the Strathclyde and Lothian Borders region on Thursday evening and up to four inches of snow are forecast to fall as far south as Birmingham.

Jonathan Powell of Positive Weather Solutions told ClickGreen he had never seen such a "violent and vicious storm" and warned people to take great care.

“This is an extremely rare storm with winds reaching speeds well above severe gale force,” he added. “This has the equivalent strength of Hurricane Katia that hit the US earlier this year.

“The UK is in the bull's eye of this storm, it's full force and strength is going to hit us square on. I have never seen anything like it in terms of strength and violence."

The Met Office red alert, which currently lasts from 10am on Thursday morning to 6am on Friday, states: “The risk of disruption is considered highest across central and southern Scotland where the police are advising that conditions for travel will be extremely poor and that travellers are likely to experience significant delays.

“Winds should tend to ease from the west on Thursday night with the severe gales becoming confined to NE Scotland by the early hours of Friday.”

Brent Walker, a forecaster at the Met Office, said: "As the storm passes through and moves to the east of the UK on Friday north-westerly winds will bring in cold air which will see a drop in temperatures.

"This is expected to bring snow to northern and western parts of the UK, while other parts of the country will see a cold night on Friday with widespread temperatures of around -1 °C."

Further severe weather warnings have been issued for the risk of snow in Western Scotland, Northern Ireland and Northwest England on Friday and Saturday.

The Met Office has also issued a Cold Weather Alert for North West England and the West Midlands.

According to Jonathan Powell, the Atlantic low front is constantly gaining strength and is on a direct collision course with the UK without losing any of its fearsome power on its journey across the ocean.

“This is an incredibly rare storm,” he added. “ I believe we will be talking about it in years to come.”

The Scottish Government this afternoon announced plans to close road bridges following the Met Office red alert warning was issued for Central, Tayside, Fife, Strathclyde, south west Scotland and Lothian & Borders.

Such warnings are extremely rare and with such a severe weather forecast, Transport Scotland is urging people to pay attention to police travel warnings.

Police advise that conditions for travel between 3pm and 6pm are likely to be extremely poor and significant delays are expected.

This could lead to all main road bridges being closed and will have a severe impact on tomorrow night's rush hour. Disruption to power supplies and property is also a strong possibility.

Transport Minister Keith Brown will this afternoon take part in a meeting of the Scottish Government's Resilience Room. Transport Scotland's Multi-Agency Response Team (MART) will continue to operate for the remainder of the week.

Mr Brown said: "Tomorrow looks set to be a major challenge for our transport system, commuters and the public. I can assure them that a lot of work is already underway to ensure Scotland is prepared for any likely transport disruption caused by severe winds. The Scottish Government's Resilience Room is closely monitoring developments as is Transport Scotland's Multi-Agency Response Team.

"We are in regular contact with the Met Office, the police, operating companies, power suppliers and other authorities and agencies to ensure everything that can be done is being done. Transport Scotland have also held a separate conference call with Extreme Weather Action Team to discuss likely impact on the rail network where one of the main threats is debris being blown onto the railway and speed restrictions after the morning rush hour which will have an impact on timetables.

"Potentially many of our main road bridges could be closed at some point tomorrow afternoon. According to the Met Office the worst period will be from 3-6pm and they are confident that wind speeds will exceed 75 mph. They have issued a red alert, which suggest speeds could even exceed 90 mph. As well as possible bridge closures we need to prepare for blown over vehicles and trees.

"Transport Scotland's high winds strategy sets out critical wind speed thresholds that dictate when certain vehicles, and eventually all vehicles, might be banned from using bridges. Actions that can be taken include 'warning' of high winds; 'segregation' of high sided vehicles and the full closure of a bridge. This involves careful management and monitoring to ensure safety is maintained at all times while minimising potential impact on traffic as far as possible.

"Operating companies and hauliers are liaising with local authorities and the police in terms of the impact and likelihood of implementing standard incident diversion routes. Traffic management crews stand ready and traffic management equipment for full bridge closures will be in place for the worst case scenario. Landscaping and cutting crews will be available to deal with the aftermath of the high winds and resources in place to quickly undertake structural inspections if required.

"The initial high winds are expected to peak tomorrow afternoon into the evening, so commuters are advised that if they can leave work earlier or work from home that would be a very sensible step to help avoid possible rush-hour delays. We are all working hard to keep Scotland moving and I urge everyone to allow extra time for travel, avoid unnecessary risks and keep checking websites and local radio for real-time information".

Assistant Chief Constable Allan Moffat on behalf of the Association of Chief Police Officers (Scotland, added: “With weather conditions expected to change dramatically over the next 24 hours, I would ask motorists to plan ahead for any journeys by checking travel updates through television, radio and internet sites before they set off.

"If the weather is as severe as currently being predicted then there will be a significant impact on the road network with a high risk of disruption.

"As with any conditions that can make driving and travel hazardous, I would ask that people drive with caution, plan ahead to ensure routes are open and safe, and be prepared for any delays or disruption that could affect their journey."