Storm Jocelyn: UK braces for another round of severe weather
Summary
- Storm Jocelyn is the second named storm in 36 hours, following Storm Isha, which caused two deaths and widespread power outages.
- Storm Jocelyn will bring strong winds and heavy rain to Northern Ireland and much of Britain on Tuesday and Wednesday.
- The Met Office has issued amber and yellow warnings for wind and rain, and advised people to stay alert and avoid unnecessary travel.
- Experts say this is the most active storm season since records began, and climate change may be a factor.
Details
The UK is facing another bout of severe weather as Storm Jocelyn, the tenth named storm of the season, approaches from the Atlantic.
Storm Jocelyn will quickly follow Storm Isha, which brought heavy rain and winds up to 99mph to Scotland, Northern Ireland, north-west England and Wales on Monday.
Storm Isha caused two deaths and left thousands of people without power.
A 58-year-old man died after a tree fell on his car in Hampshire, and a 75-year-old woman died after being swept away by floodwater in Derbyshire.
More than 100,000 homes and businesses were affected by power cuts, and many roads, bridges and railways were closed or disrupted by fallen trees and debris.
Storm Jocelyn is expected to bring similar impacts, with gusts of up to 80mph in coastal areas and 55-65mph inland.
Heavy rain will also move in, with up to 50mm possible over higher ground in southwest Scotland, the Scottish Highlands and parts of northwest England.
The Met Office has issued amber and yellow warnings for wind and rain, covering much of the UK, for Tuesday night and into Wednesday.
The amber warning means that there is a danger to life from flying debris, large waves and beach material, and damage to buildings and infrastructure. The yellow warning means that there is a risk of travel delays, power cuts, flooding and damage to trees.
Met Office Chief Meteorologist, Steve Willington, said: “Although this system will be a step down relative to Storm Isha, with the damage and clean up still underway, we could potentially see more impacts from Storm Jocelyn. Outbreaks of heavy rain on Tuesday could bring rainfall accumulations of 15 to 20 mm quite widely with 40 to 50 mm over higher ground in southwest Scotland, the Scottish Highlands and parts of northwest England.
Wind gusts are expected to reach 55 to 65 mph across northwestern Scotland while there is potential for winds to gust to 75 to 80 mph in a few places, in particular exposed parts of the Western Isles and coastal northwest Scotland early on Wednesday morning.”
The Met Office advised people to stay alert and avoid unnecessary travel, especially in the areas under the amber warning.
It also urged people to secure loose items such as garden furniture and trampolines, and to check for updates on its website and social media channels.
Background
Storm Jocelyn is the latest in a series of storms that have hit the UK and Ireland since the autumn/winter storm season started.
The storm season began with Agnes, which brought heavy rain and gusts of 70mph to the UK in late September. This was followed by storms Babet, Ciarán, Debi, Elin, Fergus, Gerrit, Henk and Isha.
Experts say this is the most active storm season since records began, and climate change may be a factor.
Liz Bentley, the chief executive of the Royal Meteorological Society, said: “There isn’t a clear signal that climate change is leading to more extreme storms in the UK.
There is a little bit of evidence, but it’s not conclusive.
What is happening though is that because of a warmer climate the atmosphere can hold more moisture, so when we get these storms the rainfall tends to be a lot heavier.
When you have one storm after another, that’s when we get widespread flooding.”
Bentley explained that the storms are driven by the jet stream, a band of strong wind in the upper atmosphere that pushes low-pressure systems across the Atlantic towards the UK. She said that the jet stream is influenced by the temperature difference between the north and south, which has increased due to the cold weather in the US and the warm weather in Europe.
The jet stream is expected to remain active for the rest of the week, bringing more unsettled weather to the UK.
The Met Office said that the drier and most settled conditions will be towards the south and east, and the most unsettled (wettest and windiest) conditions will be in the northwest.
Temperatures will be mild or close to average for the time of year.
