Multiple windstorms taking aim at Europe this week
By
Adam Douty, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Updated Mar 10, 2021 3:31 PM EDT
These abandoned buildings in the old coal-mining town of Vorkuta in the Komi Republic, Russia, were covered in snow on March 6, 2021.
The stretch of tranquil weather that began March across parts of Europe came to an end Tuesday when the first of multiple windstorms swept across Ireland and the United Kingdom.
A dominant area of high pressure sat across northwestern Europe to start the month of March providing the region with calm, albeit sometimes cloudy and foggy weather during the beginning of the month. This high shifted eastward out of the area early in the week, opening the door for two separate storms for the remainder of this week.
“The first storm began racing eastward in the North Atlantic Ocean towards Britain and Ireland and started to rapidly intensify Monday night. This storm brought rain and wind to the region through Tuesday night,” said AccuWeather Meteorologist Tyler Roys.
“A cold front crossing Wales and southern England can bring gusty winds to these areas through Wednesday,” Roys added. “However, winds in these areas will not be as strong as farther to the north, and most impacts will remain relatively minor with this first storm.”
As impacts from the first storm wane on Wednesday afternoon, the second and stronger storm will begin to be felt across Ireland and western Britain.
“A more powerful storm will approach northern Britain and Ireland Wednesday afternoon, move across Scotland Wednesday night and will end up stalled in the northern North Sea by Thursday night,” stated Roys.
“It is possible that this storm will be named by either Ireland, United Kingdom, Belgium or the Netherlands weather services over the next several days,” he said.
This storm is expected to pack a greater punch compared to the first with stronger winds likely to occur across more highly populated areas in Ireland, Wales and England.
Wind gusts of up to 75 mph (120 km/h) are expected to occur across Ireland, Wales and England as the storm rolls through. The strongest winds can occur from Wednesday evening into Thursday with downed trees and power lines possible. Power cuts are probable, and travel delays can linger through Thursday.
An AccuWeather Local StormMax™ wind gust of 100 mph (about 160 km/h) is possible in southwestern coastal Britain or southern Ireland.
In parts of coastal western Wales, England and Ireland, strong onshore winds could lead to coastal flooding.
As the storm tracks eastward, strong wind gusts can impact Benelux, northern Germany, northern Poland, Denmark and southern Scandinavia from late Wednesday night into the day on Thursday. While winds speeds may peak as high in these areas compared to Ireland and the United Kingdom, there can still be scattered power cuts, minor damage and travel disruptions.
While the greatest impact from the pair of storm is expected to be strong and damaging wind gusts, bouts of heavy rain can lead to flooding.
Roys expects up to 100 mm (4 inches) of rain across the western coastal regions of Britain and Ireland, with an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 150 mm (6 inches).
As the storm moves into cold air in place across the interior of Scandinavia, heavy snow is expected to fall across interior southern Norway into central Sweden where 15-30 cm (6-12 inches) of snow can fall. The hardest-hit areas could get an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 60 cm (24 inches) of snow.
Strong winds across this area can also lead to blizzard conditions on Thursday which may halt travel.
An active storm track from the Atlantic will cause blustery conditions to remain across northwestern Europe through at least the end of the week, with another storm possible by the weekend.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, FuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios.
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News / Weather Forecasts
Multiple windstorms taking aim at Europe this week
By Adam Douty, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Updated Mar 10, 2021 3:31 PM EDT
These abandoned buildings in the old coal-mining town of Vorkuta in the Komi Republic, Russia, were covered in snow on March 6, 2021.
The stretch of tranquil weather that began March across parts of Europe came to an end Tuesday when the first of multiple windstorms swept across Ireland and the United Kingdom.
A dominant area of high pressure sat across northwestern Europe to start the month of March providing the region with calm, albeit sometimes cloudy and foggy weather during the beginning of the month. This high shifted eastward out of the area early in the week, opening the door for two separate storms for the remainder of this week.
“The first storm began racing eastward in the North Atlantic Ocean towards Britain and Ireland and started to rapidly intensify Monday night. This storm brought rain and wind to the region through Tuesday night,” said AccuWeather Meteorologist Tyler Roys.
“A cold front crossing Wales and southern England can bring gusty winds to these areas through Wednesday,” Roys added. “However, winds in these areas will not be as strong as farther to the north, and most impacts will remain relatively minor with this first storm.”
As impacts from the first storm wane on Wednesday afternoon, the second and stronger storm will begin to be felt across Ireland and western Britain.
“A more powerful storm will approach northern Britain and Ireland Wednesday afternoon, move across Scotland Wednesday night and will end up stalled in the northern North Sea by Thursday night,” stated Roys.
“It is possible that this storm will be named by either Ireland, United Kingdom, Belgium or the Netherlands weather services over the next several days,” he said.
This storm is expected to pack a greater punch compared to the first with stronger winds likely to occur across more highly populated areas in Ireland, Wales and England.
Wind gusts of up to 75 mph (120 km/h) are expected to occur across Ireland, Wales and England as the storm rolls through. The strongest winds can occur from Wednesday evening into Thursday with downed trees and power lines possible. Power cuts are probable, and travel delays can linger through Thursday.
An AccuWeather Local StormMax™ wind gust of 100 mph (about 160 km/h) is possible in southwestern coastal Britain or southern Ireland.
In parts of coastal western Wales, England and Ireland, strong onshore winds could lead to coastal flooding.
As the storm tracks eastward, strong wind gusts can impact Benelux, northern Germany, northern Poland, Denmark and southern Scandinavia from late Wednesday night into the day on Thursday. While winds speeds may peak as high in these areas compared to Ireland and the United Kingdom, there can still be scattered power cuts, minor damage and travel disruptions.
While the greatest impact from the pair of storm is expected to be strong and damaging wind gusts, bouts of heavy rain can lead to flooding.
Related:
Roys expects up to 100 mm (4 inches) of rain across the western coastal regions of Britain and Ireland, with an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 150 mm (6 inches).
As the storm moves into cold air in place across the interior of Scandinavia, heavy snow is expected to fall across interior southern Norway into central Sweden where 15-30 cm (6-12 inches) of snow can fall. The hardest-hit areas could get an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 60 cm (24 inches) of snow.
Strong winds across this area can also lead to blizzard conditions on Thursday which may halt travel.
An active storm track from the Atlantic will cause blustery conditions to remain across northwestern Europe through at least the end of the week, with another storm possible by the weekend.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, FuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo