Category: Severe Weather

A strong storm system is currently located off the coast of Greenland, packing gusts well above 125km/h and a central pressure of only 960hPa. The storm is expected to move northeastwards over the coming two days.

A storm warning has been issued for Iceland as well as the islands of the northern North Sea; in these areas, storm gusts are to be expected due to this storm within the next 24 hours.

A storm watch has been issued for the far north and far northwest of the UK as storm gusts are possible there today and tomorrow, however the forecasts are far from certain.  For a similar reason, a storm watch has been issued for parts of the Norwegian coast, where storm gusts will be possible tomorrow.

Below, you will find the ESC European Windstorm Overview, as well as the warnings and watches.

Severe storm “WALTER”, which brought peak gusts of over 200km/h to the northern UK yesterday, is now located off the Norwegian coast with a central pressure of 961hPa. Reports of hurricane-forced gusts around 150km/h are coming in from oil rigs in the north sea; the Norwegian Gulifax Platform has reported a peak gust of 156km/h.
The storm will largely stay out to sea, however there may still be some severe storm gusts at the Norwegian coast, and storm gusts are also to be expected throughout much of mainland Denmark. A storm / severe storm warning has been issued where appropriate.

A storm watch was issued for the southern and western parts of Ireland, as towards the end of the forecast period – roughly 48 hours from now – wind speeds are expected to pick up as a new storm system approaches from the Northern Atlantic.

Below, you will find the ESC European Windstorm Overview, as well as the Windstorm Warnings & Watches.

Strong rainfall which may locally reach over 200 liters per square meter by the end of the weekend is posing the risk of flooding and landslides for the southern Balkan and Greece this weekend. The precipitation, coming from thunderstorms, formed ahead of a cold polar air mass which is currently covering much of Europe all the way south to Spain. Further, a small low pressure system has formed over the Adriatic sea, along the cold front of which there will be especially strong precipitation. The rainfall and potential consequences are expected to be especially severe along the western coast and in mountainous regions. With the passage of today’s cold front, 60 to 80, potentially 100 liters per square meter are to be expected locally at the west coast of Greece. On Saturday, the situation will calm down a bit, especially in the northern areas affected (Albania, FYROM, Bulgaria), while the south will still receive rainfall. Further strong rainfall throughout the entire area is expected on Sunday. Total amounts of rain will exceed around 70 liters per square meter in most areas, and may locally reach or even exceed 200 liters.

Though the situation is overall calm in most of Europe, a low-pressure system lingering over the northern Atlantic is expected to bring some stormy and potentially hazardous conditions to the UK and the northern coasts of western Europe soon.

The low pressure system currently has a central pressure of 987hPa, and peak gusts are currently at only around 80km/h. However, over the course of the coming night a well-defined storm field is expected to form, which will then move northeastwards along the English Channel on Wednesday. In much of the UK, peak gusts of over 100km/h, sometimes over 120km/h, are to be expected. Southeastern Ireland as well as parts of the French coast may also be impacted by hurricane-forced gusts. Severe storm watches have been issued accordingly on the maps below.
Storm gusts are also expected along the coasts of France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany and in Denmark as well as the southwestern coast of Norway. A storm watch has been issued for these areas.
As generally stormy conditions persist in much of the Northern Atlantic, storm gusts are also expected to continue in Iceland, with a storm warning having been issued.

Below you will find the ESC European Windstorm Overview, as well as the windstorm warnings and watches.

Today’s situation in Europe is fairly calm. A storm named INGOLF is currently located to the northeast of Iceland, with peak gusts of around 100km/h and a central pressure of 984 hPa.

A storm warning has been issued for the islands of the North Sea, as storm gusts are expected here within the next 24 hours. Individual storm gusts may also take place on the Baltic islands as well as the far north of the UK and the coast of Norway. Storm watches have been issued for these regions. A storm watch has also been issued for Iceland, as storm gusts are possible from time to time within the next 48 hours.

Below are the European Windstorm Overview & Warnings and Watches maps.

A duo of storms – named GRISCHA and HERWART – will be moving across Europe today, bringing seriously stormy conditions to much of the continent.

Germany is currently being pounded by the storm, and in the past few hours, peak gusts have reached over 120km/h in the lowland, with nearly 180km/h reported on some mountains. The storm is causing serious delays in the German rail system.
Wind speeds are currently also picking up in Austria and the Czech Republic, which are next in line for a direct hit by the storm.

A severe storm warning has been issued for large parts of Central Europe all the way from the Dutch coast over Germany, Austria, Czechia, Slovakia, and into Hungary and Slovenia. Peak gusts of over 120km/h even in low lying areas are to be expected here. A storm warning for gusts exceeding 70km/h covers a much wider area all the way from the Netherlands, western Germany to Bosnia, Romania, the Ukraine and Lithuania. Further, storm gusts are to be expected along most coasts of the Baltic. A storm watch has been issued for far eastern Europe, as storm gusts are expected to move into this area tomorrow.

More information on the warnings, watches and overview maps for European windstorms below:

Forecaster: LH

This weekend is expected to be a rather turbulent one throughout large parts of Europe. On Saturday, storm conditions persist between low pressure in the north and a high pressure system located near the British Isles, a constellation which will ultimately also allow tomorrow’s storm HERWART to form. In the near term, storm gusts and even some hurricane-forced gusts are to be expected in southwestern Norway and on the islands of the North Sea. Severe storm warnings have been issued accordingly.

As strom HERWART starts to form and move southeastwards over Scandinavia – towards mainland Europe – wind speeds will pick up. Within the time period for warnings – 24 hours (storm fields predicted between 24 and 48 hours from now are marked as “watches”) – storm gusts of over 120km/h are to be expected in Denmark as well as the German North Sea coast and the northern coast of the Netherlands. Storm gusts are to be expected throughout much of Germany, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic and Austria.

As storm HERWART will continue to move southeastwards, some of these regions may also experience severe storm gusts over 120km/h. A severe storm watch is in effect, but covered by the warning on the warnings & watches map.
The storm is then expected to move through eastern Europe later on Sunday at a rapid pace, with much of eastern Europe experiencing severe storm gusts or at least storm gusts. Watches have been issued accordingly; see the map below.

Today’s situation regarding windstorms in and around Europe is fairly relaxed. Though storm FLORENZ continues to stir up wind and quite a bit of waves in the northern Atlantic, its peak gusts of over 130km/h can be found to the north of Iceland and the storm is not expected to affect mainland Europe today.

A storm watch has been issued for the islands of the North Sea as well as the far north of the UK, as towards the end of the 48-hour forecast period, storm gusts may affect these areas. The same goes for the coasts and islands of the Baltic sea that have been put under a storm watch.

Below you will find the European Windstorm Overview as well as the Windstorm Warnings and Watches:

Forecaster: LH

A massive storm, named “FLORENZ”, is currently located out over the northern Atlantic. At the latest analysis (12 UTC), the storm was packing gusts of over 120km/h and had an impressive central pressure of only 946 hPa. For now, the storm is expected to continue moving roughly to the east, and in the second half of the day tomorrow will start heading to the northeast.

A storm warning has been issued for Iceland as well as the islands of the North Sea; storm gusts are to be expected in these areas within the next 24 hours. A storm watch has further been issued for the island of Ireland and parts of the Norwegian coast. There are still uncertainties, however the possibility is given that storm gusts may reach these areas between 24 and 48 hours from now.

Below you will find the ESC Overview, Warnings & Watches, and the satellite image, giving you a comprehensive overview of all the ongoing European Windstorms: