The 2017/18 winter windstorm season has started in lively fashion with some interesting events. And it is still only the first week in October!
On 13 September Windstorm Sebastian (named Aileen by the UK Met Office) swept up the English Channel bringing high winds to France, Belgium, the Netherlands, North Germany and Denmark. Sebastian is the earliest event since ex-hurricane Kate in September 2011. In 1986 another ex-hurricane, Charlie, arrived in August. And before that early storms were recorded in August 1979 (Fastnet disaster), September 1967 and August 1957. So a September storm is a pretty unusual event!
Earlier this week ex-hurricane Maria/Lee threatened the UK with high winds but it had subsided considerably by the time it arrived. Now we have another unusual event with a complex low pressure system moving down the North Sea and set bring 70-80 mph winds to East Germany and, Netherlands and Poland on Thursday 5 October.