Record Rain? From a reader.
Whilst the events in the NW are tragic for those involved we have the usual
deception claiming worst rainfall on record. http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/corporate/pressoffice/2009/pr20091120.html.
This then allows the "Boy named Sue" Environment Minister to claim it's down to
our emissions and we can expect more extreme weather like this in the future.
Fairly safe statement really, we always will.
Depends of course on which record series you use. The England and Wales
rainfall series goes back to 1914 which is the one they are quoting. http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/seriesstatistics/ewrain.txt
There is the other one, the EWP which goes back to 1766, and they actually
show a graph here: http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climatechange/science/monitoring/hadukp.html
Although filed under climate change there isn't actually much change. Data
at www.hadobs.org
Met officesay "In Cumbria, there has been 372.4 mm of rain at
Seathwaite in 56 hours"
There is a good weather history site at http://booty.org.uk/booty.weather/climate/wxevents.htm.
I think he is an ex Met office meteorologist from Bracknell days. He has 204mm
at Seathwaite in a day,on 12th November in 1897, about a 28%
higherrate.
Here are some more examples from N England and Scotland:
August 1829 Disastrous
floods of all rivers between Moray & Angus, after torrential rains 2nd to
4th August, with NE winds & waterspouts. Stone bridges and houses
washed away in 5 or 6 counties, coastline altered at river mouths.
(July had been very thundery in the South, but cold with night frosts in
Scotland).
1839 September: N.E. Scotland. Severe
flooding after heavy rainfall. Damage/destruction of bridges in
the area.
Quoted above 1897 (November)Exceptionally
heavy daily rainfalls included 204mm at Seathwaite (Cumbria /
Lake District) on the 12th November.
1907 (July):
During the afternoon of the 22nd July,
1907, Heavy thunderstorms occurred across a wide area of England, Wales, Ireland
and Scotland. These caused extensive flooding in urban areas and severely
damaged standing crops in the countryside.
1916 October 11th,208.3 mm of rain fell at
KinlocheweWestern Scotland). At the time, the highest 24hr
rainfall recorded in the British Isles, and now amongst the top 6 or 7 such
events - still (at 2005) the highest for October.
1938 October A wet month 150% of the long-term average
(though by no means a record.) Watendlath Farm (Cumbria) recorded 475mm
from the 2nd to the 12th of the month. This 12 day
totalisdouble the 444.2 mm from 1-20 Nov shown in the Met office
table.
1954 Highest Rainfall (UK) in any one year known: 6527 mm
at Sprinkling Tarn, Cumbria in (257 inches, 21.4 ft)
1963 (March): Exceptionally wet in parts of Scotland &
SW England, southern Wales etc. Combined with some rapid snowmelt (mild
air/heavy rain) early month, flooding a significant problem for these regions.
All stations recorded above average rainfall. More than three-times the average
rainfall in parts of Scotland and the south-west of England.
1974 (January): 17th: 238.4
mm of rain fell in a 24 hr period at Loch Sloy, Strathclyde (near Loch
Lomond) the highest such 24hr period total for January known, and the highest
known for Scotland for any month. Rainfall totals for the month
exceeded 1000mm at a few sites in western Scotland.
This is far in excess of anything current.
Phil Jones could have had these bridges done up years ago and still had
change.