Stormy weather

[daisychain]

Hope everyone is OK. We've had heavy rain on & off now very thundery. Was very dark sky when first got up then rain set in. Hope everyone is safe & sound as on news Stanstead airport troubled by lightning. Will unplug I/net & TV for a while until it clears here. Often have power cuts when stormy but to be expected in rural parts. 'Spect it's the same in north west Scotland

[poppy]

I have never seen a storm like it! The sky kept lightening up with no thunder, just flash after flash and it poured with rain. It happened around midnight in the suburb London.

[nannyrainbow]

Glad you are OK Helene. We had it bad too, thankfully we're not flooded but Welshpool was about 9 am. DH kept an eye on what was happening outside. thankfully all our family are OK.

[sapphire]

Glad all is well with you both. We had the storm but no flooding of homes. One main road was flooded but apparently it always does in very wet weather. The council do not do anything about the drainage system so it will continue to become flooded periodically. Garden sopping wet. bet weeds will grow quickly now they have been well watered. The ground was rock hard & we needed rain but not that much!

[richardandtracy]

No problems here, fortunately. Tracked the lightning strikes on http://en.blitzortung.org. Last night over the UK there were over 10000 lightning flashes detected in 2 hrs. A huge storm came up from France at 10.30pm and passed just to the east of us at about 12.30am. Lots of light and one of the local houses' bugular alarm was triggered several times. We had about 5 mins of torrential rain, but it didn't overwhelm the drains, so our flood defences were not needed - this time.

Regards

Richard.

[CarrieGF]

the storm arrived with us on East coast of Ireland at 3.30am, plenty of lightening and raps of thunder for an hour or so. the rain was scarily heavy for a while but no damage done. power was out for a good portion of today so that was an inconvenience. all humans and animals well and accounted for so all is good

[Squirrel]

Sounds like you all had a really big storm last night and pleased to note that all is well with all who have posted.

I do hope that others in the UK are all ok too.

[sapphire]

Had thunder/rain etc late afternoon & More rain in evening. Sky black westwards so guess more coming.

Our friends hit such bad weather they turned back - delayed their visit as this coming week not good for going out & about. So delayed plans for another time. That's what is good about being retired - you can re-schedule things easily. When at work so many things to take into consideration.

Hope everyone still safe this morning. I/net going funny so may be power cuts again.

[kingfisher2]

Awful night in the caravan so me home for a week. Being a static caravan it is well anchored to the ground but was all the noise which kept us & everyne else awake. Thunder & a lot of lightning plus very heavy rain hammering on roof. Eventually got to sleep then the birds were up early singing their hearts out to welcome another day. Normally I love bird song. Local radio weather forecast for week ahead was unsettled/stormy so home we came. Still have use of carvan until end of June & will retreat there again.

All well at our flat & DH got good news from the hospital re checks, nothing has become worse so OK for a year.

Going to do Maria Diaz flower cross stitch.

Hope everyone hale & hearty screen, flickering now so storm must be nearby. going to swi

[Serinde]

We've had heavy rain on & off now very thundery... Often have power cuts when stormy but to be expected in rural parts. 'Spect it's the same in north west Scotland

How do I tell you that, yes, we get power cuts in really bad weather (rural areas and all that)... only, we've not had any bad weather at all for weeks and weeks... In fact, I really have my fingers crossed that it does rain (softly, no downpours) on Thursday afternoon as forecast, because my waterbutts (all 480L worth) are nearly exhausted... I don't know if I can quite express how bizarre it is to be hoping for rain in the West of Scotland.

However, the news is filled with flooding in Brum, and homes with no roofs so I just hope everyone here is ok.

[richardandtracy]

Only just managed to save my house from flooding today. The water came to within 3/4 of an inch of the top of our defences. I shall have to re-assess them & probably double the height. The coachworks next to us had 5" of water across their workshop floor, and they are 4-5" higher than we are. Close run thing.

Regards,

Richard.

[Serinde]

Crikey! That was close. You guys have really had it rough, and I see on the weather forecast at lunchtime, it isn't getting any better.

[Mabel Figworthy]

Oh my goodness Richard, that was a narrow escape - and poor coachworks. But for your effective defences!

[daisychain]

Glad you escaped being flooded Richard & hope you are able to raise the defences enough before the next deluge.

No rain today, air cooler but going by weather forecast maps on TV we are due more heavy rain & storms tomorrow.

Unsure what weather was going to be like earlier today & switched Internet off for several hours. Some darker areas of sky in the distance but sun was out most of the day - not humid & sticky thankfully, nor as hot as the other day.

Hope everyone keeps safe rest of the week & we get to see a or two.

[richardandtracy]

It was close. If my daughter hadn't been at home at the time to call me in time, the house would have flooded. No doubt about it.

We are on the inside of the curve in a road that has been bypassed. When it was the main road it was resurfaced regularly without ever taking the tarmac back. As a result the floor level of the house is now at the same level as the pavement outside - and the kerb is only 2" high. Also, being on the inside of the curve, the road camber directs the runoff towards us. We make sure the drains are clear, but in a cloudburst they cannot cope and the water builds up..

My defences have been based on being high enough to keep the water at bay until it can safely flow over the camber into the front gardens opposite. Today was the first time it actually happened, but there were 2 problems in practice:

1. The acre of front lawns on the other side came very close to filling up so they wouldn't take more water without a level rise and
2. The main road was closed due to lightning hitting and igniting a car, so all the traffic diverted past us, and the single brain celled drivers insisted on going at 40-50 mph through our 30mph puddle across the road. This set up vast waves which nearly scuppered our whole flood defences

We have two areas of vulnerability, the gateway in the front wall and our Victorian sideway. The gateway is fairly easily solved by a taller board. The sideway is attached to our garage, and water flows under the garage door, exiting through the plank back wall. Across the back is a wider path which I'll have to cover with a sheet of ply or Stirling board. Not easy, but not impossible. A block wall with 9" concrete blocks was almost overtopped until I got sheet plastic and paving blocks to make a taller wall.

I know what next weekend's job is!

Regards

Richard.

[daisychain]

What a predicament you have Richard keeping waters at bay. Hope you have been able to sort things out until the weekend. Last night it looked terrible in most of Kent & Birmingham. Can't believe those terrible drivers speeding in your road when there is so much water. Another Mr. Angry moment!!, never police about when you want them. is there Glad to see on the news the elderly lady was able to take her budge with her when evacuated.

We are due more storms today & on Friday. Looking out window looks like rain has just started, a grey day - need to put lights on as it has come over darker! Supposed to be keeping bills down but no good straining your eyes.

Uh oh, bad weather starting already. More power cuts n o doubt but I'd rather that than be flooded. so awful seeing people clearing up after deluge.Keep safe everyone.

Saw floodsin Maryland too. OOps lightning am going to go …..

[Serinde]

Richard, are you still above water? I truly hope so! Finally, finally it rained this afternoon. For about half an hour, and it made no impression at all. I'm told our turn is tomorrow. Three weeks of dry, and we are like parched bones up here, but it would come just when there's a lot going on in the village (10K run and the world-famous beer festival). Hey ho. (I am not complaining, believe me, simply observing!)

[richardandtracy]

Serinde,

Fortunately we've not had any further rain. The silt deposited in our flooded garage is now reaching a really sticky consistency and is about 1/4" thick, though the stuff on the road and pavement is dust dry and easily swept.
This weekend I'm making higher boards, aiming for 16", which should give a healthy margin over the worst we can expect.

When I got back to work after the flood, I discovered that 2 acres of the 4 acre factory floor had turned into a lake. In the worst of the deluge the roof gullies couldn't cope, and there were four 75 yard long cascades into the factory. The 415 Volt three phase power supply had to be switched off in a heck of a hurry. Some of the welders are rated at 20kW, and it'd have fried anyone long before the fuses blew. Quite exciting in retrospect, knowing the no damage was actually done.

Regards

Richard.

[kingfisher2]

Glad no one was hurt at your works, that was some giant puddle you saw! Hope your home defences keep the water out in further storms. More due next few days I think.

[Serinde]

My thoughts exactly.