Storm Debi : Mon 13th Nov 2023

Everything has a cost if you want to quantify it and storms are a reality of life.

I find this notion that we should just brush them aside as if we don't live in significantly windy and rainy part of the North Atlantic is a bit ridiculous.

No forecasting model is likely to ever be able to give you the exact happenings at every Eircode, but there were significant issues caused by that storm this morning. The fact that a tree didn't fall down in your particular street or back garden does not mean that the storm was not significant. It just means that it wasn't significant in that few square meters.

Compared to most countries, we've relatively few very disruptive weather events, other than floods and the odd storm. We don't have massive freezes very often and we haven't had to deal with searing summer heatwaves and all of the associated chaos they cause - power system overloads, lack of cooling water for power plants, etc nor have we ever had to deal with wildfires, or earthquakes or anything really devastatingly bad.

We had a slightly delayed rush hour and a day off school for some. It really isn't the end of the world and it's not something we're doing every day of the week.

We got through months and months of FAR worse disruption in the last few years. This is a blip.

99% of employers are quite capable of adapting around this stuff. The other 1%, well that's an entirely different conversation and you can be sure they'd be exactly the same types (like my previous boss) who wanted me to work from the A&E!

pauldry

Weather station measured a wind gust of 68.5kph in my back garden. Hardly mind blowing but these weather stations don't really read the correct amount. Usually way lower. Babet had 58kph .

Would be interesting if we get a storm that actually affects the NW what will it read.

Rainfall up to 128mm for the month. Only 26mm from this so a bit of a non event here really.

Cluedo Monopoly

Has Sryanbruen published the comparison table yet?

Cluedo Monopoly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121362631#Comment_121362631

It would appear that most of the damage in Galway was due to the tidal surge. We were unlucky with the high tide at 4am.

The damage at Oranmore, Clarinbridge, Claddagh, Salthill and Flood St was due to the tidal surge and strong winds/rain. The wind speeds did not reach red levels.

pad199207

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121362933#Comment_121362933

I’d say they most certainly did reach red levels within that sting jet through Galway and Roscommon.

galwaybabe

This boat was thrown up on the Quay in Kinvara early this morning. It's been defying gravity since!

BlueSkyDreams

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121362933#Comment_121362933

True, but watching the Met Office predictions, Galway, Limerick and Cork cities were never predicted to hit red level winds - barely amber in fact.

But perhaps the red warnings from Met Eirann were more to do with the flooding risk?

BrianD3

RTE milking it by reporting that the aftermath is "the most dangerous phase" as people go up on roofs and use ladders to inspect damage. I'd say they're raging that they didn't get a few days to stoke up the fear beforehand so the aftermath angle will have to do. George Lee made an appearance on the 1 o clock news today, talking sh1t as usual. I think he said that the storm came in quickly like a ninja - LOL.

HeidiHeidi

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121363022#Comment_121363022

ME have frequently said that they're moving towards a more impact-based warning system, so it's not just about wind speeds - they're taking into account tides, ground saturation, trees being in leaf etc etc, and issuing warnings based on the overall likely impact of the storm.

BlueSkyDreams

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121363048#Comment_121363048

Yes, thats how I am reading it also.

I think some people are solely focused on wind speeds and actually the wind speeds in those cities were never predicted to be anywhere near red levels - at least not by the Met Office.

Cluedo Monopoly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121363022#Comment_121363022

There was a red wind warning for Galway all the same. Specifically wind - 130kph+ gusts. As Heidi says, the impact based warning system probably makes more sense because they can bring in all the factors (rain, tide, direction, time of day, time of year, soil saturation etc).

redsteveireland

"It wasn't that bad in Galway "

Galway: https://x.com/judepd/status/1724023410404081805?s=20

finlma

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121363079#Comment_121363079

It did gust over 130 km/hr in Galway so red wind warning was correct. It was definitely the worst wind I've experienced in Galway.

https://x.com/CarlowWeather/status/1723987107029373219?s=20

BlueSkyDreams

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121363079#Comment_121363079

But Galway city for example, was never predicted anything like 130kph winds.

I think Athenry hit 115kph and that was the highest recorded gust in the country.

Impact weather warning definatley makes more sense, I agree.

Flooding could easily be caused by what we might call yellow level winds, but that would be more impactful then red level winds that didnt cause structural damage in a rural inland area.

Storm 10

Very good video of the flooding in Galway City google the City Tribune on facebook can link it here and pics by me of boats washed up on the quayside

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Storm 10

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121363155#Comment_121363155

This is what my weather station recorded at 4.30am in Galway City 78mph which is 125km it was something else that's two Debbie's I have endured in my life the first in 1961

Highest Gust.jpg

nacho libre

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121362986#Comment_121362986

That might explain the 92 mph reading that was given To Villian. I wonder what MT Cranium thinks about this. Is it possible that there could have been localised gusts that high in a sting jet, while official stations outside of it recorded much lower gusts ?

giveitholly

When you see trees knocked down like this in populated areas,thank god the luck was there that no one got trapped under it

https://twitter.com/Maryknowsbees/status/1724032476501131487?t=Imics8u77ZeLOcsjO8XYyg&s=19

Cluedo Monopoly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121363155#Comment_121363155

Sorry I meant at official stations. I was surprised that exposed Mace Head didn't even exceed 100kph but Athenry hit 115kph. The peak winds seemed to funnel straight into Galway Bay and hammered the inner coastal communities with the tidal surge.

Supercell

From the looks of it that tree has seen many a storm in its lifetime but Debi was a downer.

Northernlily

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121363311#Comment_121363311

People are such dumbasses. Like there were comments from posters based in Dublin saying "There's no wind outside my door so it doesn't exist - red warning uncalled for Wah Wah Wah". Same poster is probably living in an enclosed space or some other factor affecting the gusts.

I know that road well, it's highly likely there would have been kids walking by there with their little bags if no red warning. It's quite possible lives were saved.

There was an overnight storm in Aug/Sept in the same area and it brought down some massive trees in full leaf. That wasn't a red warning but probably would have been if a day time event.

Dazler97

I slept through it but my mams on suit window blew wide open in the wind

squonk

Again common sense and judgement vibes into this. There was a red warning with East Galway specifically mentioned however it was also that the storm was to occur arrived the times of high tides so it was well telegraphed here yesterday as one example. To be fair the storm did turn out more potent here in north Clare across the bay from Galway city than I expected. I think overall the red was justified and while it was no Darwin, what we had here last night was pretty powerful though only for about an hour and a half really all told. It woke me at 3 and was beginning to abate by after 4 though still very strong at that point. You can’t save every ship and business and people will always be caught out but living by the sea no matter what warning level you should be extra vigilant.

snowstreams

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121363320#Comment_121363320

115kmph at a very sheltered Athenry station. There are lots of forests in that area that would lower the wind speed by quite a bit.

Dont forget this 115kmph gust in Athenry was a new wind gust record for the station, so this storm was more powerful than Ophelia for that location.

The record from the marine institute in Oranmore of 142kmph is more indicative of what the winds were like in this narrow area of the storm path.

redsteveireland

Having just done the commute in reverse and in daylight, I am quite lucky I made it in this morning without having to divert as most trees that fell, actually fell away from the road. Lost count of the trees down.

Cluedo Monopoly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121363475#Comment_121363475

I didn't know that 115 was a record at Athenry. Interesting. I wouldn't compare to Ophelia though, Galway got away lightly in that one. The big one for me was Storm Ali (Sept 2018) which I believe hit 143 out at Mace Head. I actually saw 2 trees come down that day, it was short and sharp but very damaging. The ground was wet and the trees still had leaves which are also important factors.

Is there a link to the marine institute weather station?

snowstreams

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121363497#Comment_121363497

I'll never forget Ali either. It happened right during rush hour, I saw a few trees fall on my path to work too. It was earlier in the autumn so trees had leaves to catch the wind but I still think Ali was likely longer lasting & stronger.

I feel that this is the worst storm since Ali anyway.

The marine institutes data is available in some open source locations, I saw carlow weather share it on X:

https://twitter.com/CarlowWeather/status/1723987107029373219?s=20

Cluedo Monopoly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121363541#Comment_121363541

Yeah I was driving to work during Ali too. I think it lasted from around 8am to 10am at peak. I had never seen trees fall before and I was shocked how fast it happens. 2 large ones within 50m of my car. I was expecting a long "timmmmbbbbeeerrrr" but they just collapsed. There were other trees down all over the place. It was very localised to Galway. I don't remember any tidal surges for Ali. Debi was unlucky in that regard.

Joe Public

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121363068#Comment_121363068

Met Eireann did forecast gusts in excess of 130Km/h across much of the country, not that I'm disappointed or anything but just stating what was forecasted.

BlueSkyDreams

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121363706#Comment_121363706

Yes, I think they did.

I was referring to the Met Office though. They didnt forecast winds as strong as that.