Monday, 6 January 2014

Storms

A very deep area of low pressure over the Atlantic will move eastwards, then northeastwards, passing northwest Scotland on Tuesday as a filling feature. This low will maintain unsettled and windy conditions everywhere, but importantly, will generate some exceptionally large waves around southwestern coasts.

Forecasters are warning of more coastal flooding on Monday.

"A large, deep depression in the Atlantic is whipping waves up out at sea on Sunday and these will come into western and southern coastal areas of the UK as a large swell on Monday," the Met Office said.

"This, combined with waves driven by the winds in UK waters on Monday, will generate wave heights of 7-10m over parts of western Scotland, Wales and south-west England, and 3-7m in much of the English Channel and Irish Sea."
The Met Office said the public should be aware of the dangers of waves crashing onshore and over topping shore lines and sea fronts.

BBC NEWS - Have you been affected by the floods? Please get in touch using the form below. When sending us pictures at no time should you endanger yourself or others.

BUT

A near-complete ichthyosaur skeleton discovered on the Dorset coast after Christmas storms was hours away from destruction, fossil hunters have said.

Storms uncovered the 1.5m (5ft) fossil at the base of Black Ven near Charmouth on Boxing Day.

The giant marine reptile fossil was painstakingly removed over eight hours, shortly before another storm was due.

Professional fossil hunter Paul Crossley, who helped excavate it, said it was "a beautiful find".

"There was a very difficult, short window before another storm blew in so we were limited for time before it got ploughed out," he said.

With only part of the snout missing, but with most vertebrae and its rib cage in place, Mr Crossley said it was one of only a few ichthyosaur fossils found in such a complete condition on the Jurassic Coast in the past decade.

Recent storm-force south-westerly winds hitting the crumbling cliffs have produced some of the most conducive conditions for fossil hunting on the beaches around Lyme Regis in several years.

Mr Crossley said: "The word is already out that Lyme Regis is the capital of fossil hunting at the moment, we've seen more people than normal on the beaches.

"We always advise going when the tide is falling and always stay well away from the cliffs and mudslides. Use common sense."

MIND HOW YOU GO.
  • A review of coastal flood defences and the impact of the storms has been ordered by the Welsh government
  • The search for Harry Martin, 18, missing since going out to take pictures of stormy seas in Devon,continued for a third day
  • A group of wild horses stranded by rising flood waters have been rescued in Dorset
  • Work to try to halt tidal flooding in the Cornish town of Looe would cost more than £10m, the Environment Agency says
  • A West Sussex beach has been cordoned off after strong tides breached recently completed sea defences

1 comment:

Pigott & Warin said...

Time for us to make a research trip to the sea then?