News Dangerous storm announced for Northern Europe

[Urwumpe]

Looks like we are inbound for some trouble at the end of the week, a storm named "Xaver" had been detected near Greenland, that will very likely turn into a very dangerous condition for northern Europe on Thursday. While a two day prediction is usually not very accurate, windspeeds above 100 km/h in the heartland of Germany and 150 km/h at the coast and in the mountains are minimum estimates.

It will be especially dangerous for Germany, the storm currently follows a development, that could bring it into optimal position for dangerous flooding at the North Sea coast. It is currently estimated at just 5 meters above normal MSL, but the storm is moving slower than usual and could bring water levels in excess of the 8 meters that the German north sea coast levees had been designed for.

On Friday, we will also get snow all over Germany... looks like a bad and good day for my companies Christmas party.

http://www.spiegel.de/wissenschaft/...-und-sturmflut-fuer-deutschland-a-936954.html

 

[Ghostrider]

We're all gonna die.

(again)

 

[statickid]

It's a true statement, overall

 

[tomthenose]

i think it may miss UK, just checked met office forecast and they're just saying it'll be chilly with a bit of snow, certainly nothing like those winds. they're usually the first to panic!

8 mtr water level rise! Thats a whopper, is that big storm waves or do storms actually blow the sea onshore?

 

[BruceJohnJennerLawso]

8 mtr water level rise! Thats a whopper, is that big storm waves or do storms actually blow the sea onshore?

Probably blown onshore, if its anything like a North American Hurricane in that respect.

 

[Urwumpe]

8 mtr water level rise! Thats a whopper, is that big storm waves or do storms actually blow the sea onshore?

The latter, the Elbe mouth is facing directly into the wind on such conditions, the flood of 1962 for example was caused by such conditions and reached 5.82 meters combined with the water from the river, which was 3 meters more than many levees at that time.

If the storm moves slow enough, the river water can't flow into the North Sea and the water levels keep on rising.

Anything more than 7.5 meters would be fatal, but 5.5 meters plus waves for a longer time could already be enough to weaken the levees from the land side.

Pressure is estimated to drop below 975 millibar.

 

[Enjo]

Will our God forsaken Land finally get some public holiday then?

 

[tomthenose]

oh yes, all those 'Fury of Nature' documentaries coming back to me now, just had a look at the north sea on google earth and yeah, i can see how it would be a bottle neck in those circumstances. and by golly that bit of Europe is FLAT.

i Feel a bit selfish now because i was looking at our forecast and hoping there'd be enough snow on friday for some pre-xmas sledging! Theres definitely more at stake than that then...

 

[Urwumpe]

Will our God forsaken Land finally get some public holiday then?

:rofl::rofl::rofl:

No.

 

[MattBaker]

Will our God forsaken Land finally get some public holiday then?

You'll get a public holiday once you get hit by a tree. Otherwise: Work! Always work!

As someone living in the southernmost bits of Germany I'll have to watch out that my popcorn is ready then. Otherwise: Meh.

 

[garyw]

met office have nothing aside for some slightly stronger winds on Thursday.

It seems a case of 'don't panic!' but I'm sure our railway service will collapse as it always does at the first sign of weather.

 

[Enjo]

At least they know how what it means to have respect for themselves!

 

[Pablo49]

We're all gonna die.

(again)

NOT AMERICA, AWWWYEAH!

Wait, there are people in Europe? You know, besides hipsters studying abroad in France.

(Good luck eurobros D: )

 

[Melvin]

It's Bush's fault.

 

[Scav]

It's Bush's fault.

Yeah, I could see that . . .

 

[Urwumpe]

So, we have a warning for my town (250 km away from the coast line) for 115 km/h gusts or stronger now from Thursday noon on.

Much stronger winds are expected for the coast and at the hilltops, 180+ km/h winds are expected at some places.

The German railway company DB recommends travellers to avoid using their services in Northern Europe from Thursday to Friday, because overhead lines might get damaged and trees blown on the rails and delays are almost ensured.

The airport of Hamburg might get closed, passengers should be aware of it.

From thursday evening on, the storm and rain will turn into a snowstorm.

 

[Cosmic Penguin]

Is thundersnow rather common across Europe? :shifty:

 

[MattBaker]

80 km/h announced here. Noteworthy but nothing really big.

Aaaand I'm using the Bahn on friday. Well, I guess I'm not in the north.

 

[Ripley]

Is thundersnow rather common across Europe? :shifty:

Now I'm in my country again, but about 15-20 years ago I lived in Denmark for some years (I'm from Rome, so no horrible weather down here), and I remember some pretty decent storms - compared to what I was used to anyway.

Once it snowed soooo strong and for soooo looong that cars and trucks were stuck in the highways (and with stuck I mean completely covered by snow).

Danish news on TV and radio were saying that "it was the worst snowstorm in the last 40 years".
The stuck drivers were rescued and taken away by Falck, and the whole emergency system was in full swing.

I remember that some of the drivers, interviewed after a few days on TV, said that they still could not find their cars/trucks, still totally submerged by snow!
It was as the whole land surface had heightened by some meters!

But that happened many years ago.
I don't know now, with all this crazy climate change, how it might have worsened.

 

[statickid]

whoa a snow thunder storm? never heard of that before!