Weekend Weather Warning 8th/9th Feb 2014

RozDevon

Re: Weekend Weather Warning 8th/9th Feb 2014

Post by RozDevon »

Just taken the dawg for walkies, on the cliff path at Heybrook Bay, and its a fierce freezing cold Easterly.
Could hardly keep my feet in the huge gusts! Huge amount of rain as well. Nice!!!!!!!!
It was a short walk and very glad to get home!
Apparently theres snow on Dartmoor today, but not visible from here.
Temperature outside back door (sheltered spot) 5c now.
Barometer 985.
Poor old front hedge now being battered from the East for a change! OMG! Its all tied up together and to stumps to try and stop the rocking of the roots. Taken 8 years to get that hedge thick and serviceable! Blutty weather!
Obviously not as bad as being flooded out, but gardening does test your patience sometimes!!!
Neighbour at the top of the road, overlooking Rame Head and Plymouth Sound, has now lost 3 of his scots pines, now looks so bare and his garden really exposed to the wind. The tree surgeons must be really rubbing their hands in this weather. Whats bad for some is good for others and good luck to them, I say.
jungle jas

Re: Weekend Weather Warning 8th/9th Feb 2014

Post by jungle jas »

Whilst I know Dave doesn't approve, I started on here without releasing some one had changed the date so I have nowhere to go. Therefor I'll have to finish on here. Yesterday (thursday the13th ) was a dry and sunny day so I replaced the fence in the morning to keep the sheep out, then in the afternoon helped the farmer to clear the road from fallen trees with the old chainsaw and finished this morning just as the wind and rain started again! It is a long time since I used a chainsaw in anger, I normally only play with one to cut up a bit of wood for the fire so I am now lay on the sofa completely cream crackered.

I now have had time to survey the damage done which in my garden was confined to my 7 1/2 foot echium leaning at an alarming angle. I have stood it up and attached it to the shed, I hope it firms up and survives. However within a couple of hundred yards of the house is devastation on a large scale. One neighbour with a 5 acre garden has lost in her estimation 50 trees, mostly pine. One of which is leaning on the neighbours roof! That neighbour has had three trees blown over in the garden and three in the drive. Another one has two trees down across his drive and a branch swinging on the main power lines which in this wind is liable to rub through the insulation and black us all out. Despite this it took him 2 hours to get through to the electricity companies emergency number and they had no idea when they can get to it. My guess is they won't bother unless it shorts out! Yet another neighbour has 6 trees down in the back garden and finally the farmer has around 30 oak trees down in the immediate area.

It would appear this damage was caused by hurricane force winds which were forced into some sort of a vortex by a 60 foot high horse shoe shaped rock formation at the rear of the houses. This normally protects us from the strong prevailing winds. It was extremely disquieting to lookout of the front window to see hurricane force wind blowing from west to east and out of the rear window from east to west. :roll: I doubt I shall ever see the like again. icon_thumright

At least I hope not. :ahhh!:
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