Worst of the Weather

[changeling67]

Dawlish Railway line - pathway to Cornwall - http://www.exeterexpressandecho.co.uk/Picture-Strom-damage

Many people from the UK would have seen this on the news last night.  Most of the attention (quite rightly) has been given to the ongoing plight in the Somerset levels - however Devon and Cornwall's battering over the last couple of days has seen events have a dramatic twist.  It has been well documented about the sea rolling into the shops of St Ives and tearing sizable chunks out of Newlyn Green - now this is serious.

Above is part of the mainline route to Cornwall - Dawlish in Devon.  I have taken the route many times and the outstanding feature of this beach is the dramatic brick-red sand.  Now it is the devastation of the whole track, which is now partly suspended in mid air.  Many trains are cancelled, some rerouted and other lines are closed because the aggregate has washed the ground underneath the track.  There aren't enough emergency coaches put on to cover this, so Cornwall is stuck at the moment.  It is estimated that this storm alone will cost Cornwall £10 million pound ( just over $16 million USD), with more weather to hit us at the weekend.

Under the cut, there are more photos of my area (18 miles from Lands End).

Promenade, Penzance, Cornwall - UK - https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=606031469468441&set=o.179903255381023&type=1&theater

Newlyn Green, Near Penzance, Cornwall - UK - https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=606031469468441&set=o.179903255381023&type=1&theater

Comments

[bardcat.livejournal.com]

Wow! What devastation the storm brought. I hope recovery is coming along for people and that things get better as the days go along.

[calico-pye.livejournal.com]

Mostly, we are just getting on with it - some have sandbags and planking to shore up the shops and homes etc. and of course roads are closed. Thing is, our government are very slow to react - they rely on the idea that most will drain away. It hasn't - the poor people on the Somerset levels have been in the same state for over a month now. Water is being pumped out slower than it is coming in. They have only just got the army involved, but truthfully, there is no place left where the water can be pumped.

More of the same is on its way - there is a clock tower at Porthleven that is bound to come down as it is unsafe at the moment. We don't have much choice other than to stand back and watch :-/

[melodysparks.livejournal.com]

This weather is like we are being battered with mini hurricanes one after another

[calico-pye.livejournal.com]

It is a bit like that. From what I can gather, it's all about the angle of the jet stream and it keeps bringing more dramatic weather patterns. Funny - it doesn't bring early springs or glorious summers :-/

[egg-shell.livejournal.com]

That area seems such a lovely place - but now this to mar it. Is this because of global warming and the seas getting higher? Could a storm have done this much damage before? Or were the storms that hit recently stronger than any to hit here before? I'm sorry for your little town.

[calico-pye.livejournal.com]

It's the jet stream that has done it. It is at an odd angle, therefore it is picking up a lot of the storms off of the sea. Usually, whatever the US gets, the UK gets a milder version - right now, everything is being thrown at us.

Not sure about global warming, specifically - we have had unusually high tidal surges, hence the damage. However, we have had gales that have been the worst on record - and there seems to be more on the horizon.

Most of the photos I have picked (bar the ones of the railway, which are on the Devon/Cornwall border) are from Penzance (7 miles away) and St Ives (3 miles away). I am in one of the smaller villages and am a bit more sheltered than the larger towns. Alas, weather is coming in again - fingers crossed that it won't be as bad as predicted :-)

[egg-shell.livejournal.com]

http://earth.nullschool.net/#current/wind/surface/level/orthographic=-51.92,41.61,490

I came across this link that shows the winds all over the earth. Your area is in the thick of things right now.

[calico-pye.livejournal.com]

That is an amazing link - yup, seems like we are in the thick of it. It feels bitterly cold at the moment, hailstorm then the wind rises again :-/