Agnes
There’s a bit of a wind today.
It’s also raining.
Since the weekend we have had lots of items in the news and in the papers about the terrible “Storm Agnes” that is about to pound the country into a mass of misery and destruction . This storm was something to be feared. We have had constant messages about yellow alerts for various counties. In fact they are doubling up and issuing separate alerts for wind and for rain.
Then they stepped it up a bit and started issuing orange alerts for some counties. I awoke this morning to find that Wicklow is included amongst the counties with a dreaded orange alert. I am to be afraid. I am to be very afraid.
It’s a storm. That’s all. We have them every year for as long as I can remember. In the past they didn’t have names and that concept would have been laughable. But now we live in an era of fear. We must be afraid of the weather. We must be afraid of a virus. We must be afraid of the very air we breathe and the water we drink. Nothing is safe.
I appreciate that some people may loose their power supply. Inconvenient but not life threatening. Unless of course your in an iron lung. Do they still have iron lungs?
Trees will probably fall. That’s just nature. The wind has been blowing and trees have been falling since the dawn of time. At least now we have power tools to repair any damage or obstruction.
I have to go out later at the height of the Orange Alert. The dog has an appointment with the vet and I have to collect the crate load of monthly pills and potions from the pharmacy for us humans. I’m not supposed to drive during an Orange Alert. I’m supposed to cower in fear with my blankets pulled over my head. I’m supposed to be a quivering mass of nerves in case Agnes comes after me.
I shall wear a hat in case it’s still raining.
I shall use the chin-strap on my hat in case it’s still windy.
Life must go on.
An Orange alert? Doesn’t that mean that the dreaded lodges must be moving into Wicklow? That is fearful indeed, and they produce enough bluster and hot air to bring a REAL storm!
Actually, there are a few storms that you probably would like to know of in advance, like this one in 1839: https://www.armagh.space/weather/history/the-night-of-the-big-wind. There was another in 1894 that was almost as bad, but at least by then they were able to document the damage with photos. There are a few details about that one on my blog.
The one I dread is when they waen of “yellow snow”. I assume the storms in 1839 and 1894 were part of the Climate Crisis? And everyone has forgotten about Hurricane Charlie back in 1986?
It is not a storm. Wind speeds over 103 of your metric kilometres per hour.
It is a mild gale. Such as any sailing buff would be pleased with.
It is a sly scare tactic.
Before Warble Gloaming Storms were rare. You remember 1953?
Now multiple “storms” occur so frequently that in the last year we have already run through storms initial letters A to Z, and we have to start again at Agnes.
So for Storm Agnes best not erect your sun umbrella.
Just an aside. The naming of these Storms is alternatively Male and Female.
Wot abart the other 57, or is it 157, genders. The Met Office should be scolded or de-platformed, or something.
I was somewhat surprised to see the weather mob stating today that speeds of 117km/h were recorded. 73mph? That’s windy but not as a maximum gust on an offshore island where you’d expect extremes?
I actually don’t remember 1953. I must have been asleep then.
Ah, a wise man that has a chin strap on his hat. I often wear what we Scots called a fore and aft hat, a tweed thing with a brim of sorts. I lost my first in a gale climbing over a hill in Wales called Tryfan in 1986. I bought a replacement from the wilds of Scotland a couple of years ago. I must fit a chin strap because the awful storms that are coming will once again blow it off my head.
I goy myself a Tilley hat a couple of years ago. Wide brimmed but soft with a built in chin strap. It’s great in rain, high wind or bright sunshine. I rarely use the chin strap though and tuck it into the crown of the cap when putting it on.
It seems like the inadequate weather-folk everywhere feel a need to emphasise their position, so create frequent ‘weather-panics’ by dressing up normal weather variations as something terrifying, ideally linking it to ‘climate-change’ too.
It’s not fooling anyone and, in time, will become like crying “Wolf”, we’ll disregard everything they say because the odds are it’s just more self-aggrandising again.
Can’t help thinking that replacing them with AI could help to bring some sanity and balance back to the forecasts.
I have always had a bit of an interest in the weather [I had a great geography teacher]. A while back I discovered windy.com and have done my own forecasting from that [using the same data as the Met Office]. Frequently they warn bout thunder which rarely happens. Their threats of rain are usually just threats. They do persistently dial up the warnings which aren’t warranted. It must just be part of the overall scheme to keep us perpetually frightened of something?
But I’ve been looking forward to the unusual Irish weather phenomenon Stor Magnus. Slovenly radio speakers have a lot to answer for.
Haha! That got a chuckle out of me. A rare event.