Weather situation on 3 October 2009

Weather

A low pressure system to the north of the UK brought strong winds and some heavy rain. Wind speeds were strongest during the morning and early afternoon before easing by the evening.

A sample of the highest gusts included:

Impacts

Wind blows a large wave over a structure

• Ferry crossings between Isle of Man and Liverpool cancelled for a time.
• Dunhill Links Golf Championship and three Scottish League football matches postponed.
• Around 1,000 homes were temporarily without power as electricity infrastructure was affected in Northern Ireland.
• A loose panel on a petrol station in Whitehaven, Cumbria caused the station and surrounding road to be closed until it could be secured.
• A man had a lucky escape from a falling branch in Fenham, Newcastle, and residents were evacuated from high-rise flats as a window cleaning cradle was blown loose.
• Strong winds exacerbated fires on moorland in North Yorkshire and hampered the search for a missing diver off the west coast of Scotland.

Warning Assessment

Based on the new warning system the following assessments would have been made:

• Likelihood - high
• Impact - low

This would have resulted in a yellow warning for wind: