Storm Eunice Case Study

BY ANTHONY BENNETT

Three people died in one of the worst storms to hit the UK in decades. Storm Eunice, sandwiched between Storms Dudley and Frankline brought record-breaking winds to the UK.

Over the course of one week, the big three, Storms Dudley, Eunice and Franklin battered the UK during February 2022.

Fierce winds from Storm Eunice toppled trees and sent debris flying, causing the deaths of a woman in her 30s in London, a man in his 20s in Hampshire, and a man in his 50s in Merseyside.

Eunice was the second storm in a week to hit the UK after parts of Scotland, northern England and Northern Ireland were battered by Storm Dudley.

A 122mph gust on the Isle of Wight set a provisional record in England, while the storm closed schools, disrupted travel and tore off roofs.

The Needles on the Isle of Wight recorded a wind gust of 122 mph this morning

This is provisionally the highest gust ever recorded in England#StormEunice ⚠️ pic.twitter.com/aNYMnFbMvT

— Met Office (@metoffice) February 18, 2022

About 400,000 homes were without power on the evening of Friday 18th February 2022.

What caused Storm Eunice?

The UK’s recent cluster of winter wind storms is related to a particularly strong polar vortex creating low pressure in the Arctic, and a faster jet stream – a core of very strong wind high in the atmosphere that can extend across the Atlantic – bringing stormier and very wet weather to the UK.

A stronger jet stream makes storms more powerful and its orientation roughly determines the track of the storm and where it affects.

The storms were predicted to contain a “sting jet”: a small, narrow airstream that can form inside a storm and produce intense winds over an area smaller than 100 km.

Sting jets, which were first discovered in 2003, and likely occurred during the Great Storm and Storm Arwen, can last anywhere between one and 12 hours. They are difficult to forecast and relatively rare, but make storms more dangerous.

Sting jets occur in a certain type of extratropical cyclone – a rotating wind system that forms outside of the tropics. These airstreams form around 5km above the Earth’s surface then descend on the southwest side of a cyclone, close to its centre, accelerating as they do and bringing fast-moving air from high in the atmosphere with them. When they form, they can produce much higher wind speeds on the ground than might otherwise be forecast by studying pressure gradients in the storm’s core alone.

Meteorologists are still working to understand sting jets, but they are likely to have a significant influence on the UK’s weather in a warming climate.

What were the impacts of Storm Eunice?

Three people died in the UK in Storm Eunice on Friday as fierce winds toppled trees and sent debris flying.

These people get blown over by the wind as Storm Eunice batters people to the ground in Croydon, South London.#StormEunice pic.twitter.com/ZUM63K93Ae

— talkRADIO (@talkRADIO) February 18, 2022

The storms left 1.4 million households without electricity, some for up to 72 hours.

Dozens of flights were cancelled and hundreds delayed at airports across the UK, while P&O Ferries stopped services between Dover and Calais.

Pilots have been struggling to land at Heathrow Airport due to strong winds from Storm Eunice.

Video courtesy of @BigJetTVLIVE who have a live stream from the airport since this morning, showing planes landing. @HeathrowAirport #stormeunice #Heathrow pic.twitter.com/8cdkv1oMN0

— London Live (@LondonLive) February 18, 2022

With many railway lines blocked by trees and other debris, major train operators – including Chiltern Railways, Avanti West Coast and Great Western Railway – were forced to suspend services, while in Wales all trains were cancelled.

Overhead lines were torn down by fallen trees near Stockport on Friday 18th February 2022 Network Rail said.

West Coast mainline services have also been affected after the temporary closure of Preston railway station, where roofing became loose.

Network Rail recorded about 200 storm-related incidents between London Paddington and Penzance in Cornwall in recent days, adding that the number of incidents was unprecedented and some of the worst the UK has experienced in three decades

Landmark buildings suffered damage in the winds, with panels ripped off the roof of the O2 Arena in London.

The top of the spire at St Thomas’s Church in Wells, Somerset, toppled to the ground.

#STORMEUNICE It’s a miracle that this sizeable & very heavy spire tip, with windvane & lightning conductor, didn’t hit anyone as it came crashing-down at St Thomas Church in #Wells, #Somerset around noon. Video captured by Matthew Hodson (many thanks for sending to @BBCBristol) pic.twitter.com/fq2KfvpWBR

— Ian Fergusson (@fergieweather) February 18, 2022

Dolphins and other marine mammals become stranded around the Welsh coast. While sand dunes at a nature reserve were blown away by winds caused by recent storms. Sand on Formby beach in Merseyside was shifted as Storms Dudley, Eunice and Franklin battered the UK in one week.

A zoo will remain closed after a tree fell and damaged the lion enclosure during Storm Eunice.

Africa Alive, a zoo at Kessingland, Suffolk, closed after a tree fell and damaged the lion enclosure. The pride was moved to another zoo and remained closed for a period of time due to health and safety reasons.

Widespread flooding occurred following the three storms. Floods in Wales hit homes, road and rail services.

In Shropshire, people were rescued and properties evacuated due to flooding and at Ironbridge two severe flood warnings were issued – meaning lives are in danger and the Severn barriers are expected to be breached.

The Wharfage Road in Ironbridge – which runs alongside the river – was closed to pedestrians, as it is no longer safe behind the barriers erected there, the Environment Agency said.

The River Severn peaked at 16.9ft (5.15m) in the Shrewsbury area, 3.9 inches (10cm) short of the record levels set in 2000, and parts of the town centre have been underwater.

The River Wharfe overtopped its banks in Tadcaster, North Yorkshire, leading to flooding.

Matlock in Derbyshire was flooded for the third time in three years after the town’s high street was submerged.

What were the immediate responses to Storm Eunice?

The Met Office issued rare red weather warnings for coastal areas of south-west England and south Wales, along with south-east England, indicating a danger to life.

#StormEunice Weather warnings ⚠️🟠🔴

Get REAL-TIME UPDATES:

APP
👉 https://t.co/SKPrqORHEO

YOUTUBE
👉 https://t.co/WhIb7NqqhY
WEB
👉 https://t.co/j7ojlIej4g#WeatherAware pic.twitter.com/YzWphvpbR3

— Met Office (@metoffice) February 18, 2022

A second red warning, meaning there is a threat to life has been issued by, covering South East England and London. Severe weather will affect most of the UK today from #StormEunice. Alex Deakin has the details pic.twitter.com/zIYjK2zyAl

— Met Office (@metoffice) February 18, 2022

The M4 Prince of Wales Bridge and the Humber Bridge were closed, as was the M48 Severn Bridge due to high winds.

London Fire Brigade declared a major incident – receiving 1,958 calls on Friday, three times more than the previous day.

The ambulance service in the South Central England region declared a critical incident due to demand on its emergency services.

HM Coastguard issued an urgent appeal for people to stay away from the coast.

#StormEunice is forecast to be at its most dangerous this morning, especially in the South West, with a danger to life in some areas.

Please stay home if you can & avoid exposed coastal areas. Follow @metoffice for weather warnings.

Emergency at the coast? Call #999Coastguard pic.twitter.com/yktznPcAz7

— HM Coastguard (@HMCoastguard) February 18, 2022

What were the long-term responses to Storm Eunice?

Insurance payouts for damage caused by Storm Eunice could total between £200m and £350m, according to early estimates from the consultancy firm PwC.

Mohammad Khan, General Insurance Leader at PwC UK, said insurance losses would mainly relate to “damage to homes, commercial properties and vehicles from falling trees and flying debris”.

Scientists have proposed ten golden rules for tree-planting, which they believe is a top priority for all nations this decade.

Experts from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew say that planting trees is a brilliant solution to tackling climate change and protecting biodiversity; however, the wrong tree in the wrong place can cause more harm than good.

Forests are essential to life on Earth. Not only do they provide habitats to three-quarters of the world’s plants and animals, but they also offer food, fuels and medicines as well as soaking up carbon.

However, forests are disappearing at an alarming rate. An area of pristine tropical rainforest the size of Denmark is lost every year.

Reforestation, the restoration of forests that have recently been lost, could protect biodiversity and help fight global climate change by removing huge amounts of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. There is a range of ambitious tree-planting projects happening around the world to replace lost forests.

The UK Government aims to plant 30,000 hectares (300 sq km) of new forest every year by the end of this parliament.

There is an ambitious project in Africa to grow a green wall of trees spanning 5000 miles (8,048km) across the entire continent, from east to west. The project, which will become the largest living structure on Earth, will help fight the climate crisis and combat desertification.

Planting trees is an essential solution to protecting biodiversity and combatting climate change. However, the process is surprisingly complex. The right trees have to be planted in the right place, if not it can cause more damage than food.

Natural forests, containing a wide range of plants, animals, and fungi, are often replaced by commercial plantations where trees are harvested after a few decades. Afforestation is more effective when people try to recreate forests similar to natural forests and provide benefits to people, the environment and nature, and capturing carbon.

A recent review led by Kew scientists and Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) proposes ‘ten golden rules for reforestation’ to boost benefits for people and the planet. The rules are:

1. Protect existing forest first
2. Work with local people
3. Maximise biodiversity recovery to meet multiple goals
4. Select the right area for reforestation
5. Use natural forest regrowth wherever possible
6. Select the right tree species that can maximise biodiversity
7. Make sure the trees are resilient to adapt to a changing climate
8. Plan ahead
9. Learn by doing
10. Make it pay

An overview of each rule is summarised in the diagram below.

Further details of each step are available on the Kew Gardens website.

Further reading

10 Golden rules for restoring forests – RBG Kew

Ten golden rules for reforestation to optimize carbon sequestration, biodiversity recovery and livelihood benefits – Report

Support for Geography in the News Assignment 

Describe the distribution of forest change shown on the choropleth map

This question is asking you to describe the distribution (spread) of forest change shown on the choropleth (shading) map. As this is an interactive choropleth map you can click on the colours in the scale to highlight the patterns. Describing patterns on a choropleth map is easy using the TEA tool as it provides a structure to your answer. TEA stands for trend, examples and anomalies.

Trend

To begin with, it is useful to include an opening statement about the general distribution (pattern/spread) shown on the map. You could do this by asking yourself does the choropleth map show the global annual change in forest area in 2015 even or uneven?

Paragraph starter: The global annual change in forest area in 2015 is even/uneven.

Examples

Next, you need to discuss the patterns on the map giving examples. You could consider:

• What continents/countries are experiencing a decline in forest area?
• Are the countries mainly HICs, NEEs or LICs?
• Are they near the equator or further away?
• Are they inland or coastal?
• What continents/countries are experiencing an increase in forest area?
• Are the countries mainly HICs, NEEs or LICs?
• Are they near the equator or further away?
• Are they inland or coastal?

Anomalies

Finally, consider any patterns/examples that stand out. In this example, are there any HICs (wealthy countries) that are experiencing high levels of decline in forest cover – top tip – check out North America!)? Are there any LICs/NEEs that are experiencing high levels of forest cover increase (have a look at Asia!)?

Every time we do the laundry, hundreds of thousands of tiny fibres – known as microfibres – are washed off our clothes, down the drain and into the environment.

Recent research has found high levels of microplastic fibres polluting the Arctic Ocean. These fibres most likely come from washing synthetic clothes in Europe and North America.

In Canada, the Ocean Wise Conservation Association found microplastics in 96 of 97 seawater samples taken from across the polar region. Ninety-two per cent of the microplastics found are fibres, and 73% originate from polyester clothing. The majority of the samples collected were from 3-8 metres below the surface, where much marine life feeds.

The 3-8m layer of seawater is a biologically important area where we find phytoplankton, zooplankton, small fish, big fish, seabirds and marine mammals, looking for food. Large animals such as turtles, albatross, seals and whales die through eating plastic, and there is no reason to think it was different for the smaller ones.

Another study by Ocean Wise in 2019, estimated 3,500tn plastic microfibers from clothes washing in the US and Canada end up in the sea each year; the equivalent in weight to over 20 blue whales!

As well as the fibres found at the North Pole, plastic exists at the deepest point on Earth, the Mariana Trench, and Mount Everest’s peak. Plastic injures wildlife when it is mistaken for food. People also consume microplastics through food and water and breathe them in. However, the health impact of this consumption is not currently known.

Most of the water that flows into the Arctic comes from the Atlantic Ocean. The new research has found more microplastic fibres nearer the Atlantic, than the Pacific Ocean. As you can see from the map showing ocean current below, the North Atlantic Drift transports microplastics released into the North Atlantic.

Major ocean currents

What is the Impact of ocean life ingesting microplastics?

Research by The University of Exeter has shown that tiny marine animals called zooplankton, a vital food source for many larger animals like fish and whales, can eat microplastics. When Zooplankton eat microplastics they consume less of their normal food, meaning they get less energy from their diet. This leads to less energy for growth and reproduction. At this point, the microplastics enter the food chain.

As larger animals consume plankton, the concentration of plastic increases. Chemicals attached to microplastics can increase liver toxicity and other pathological changes.

Microfibers fill the bellies of fish, and, while the plastic remains in their guts, the toxins that microfibers contain can migrate into fishes’ flesh, consumed in turn by humans. Researchers found that about 25 percent of individual fish and 67 percent of all species intended for human consumption contained plastic debris, the majority being microfibers.

There is the potential for microfibers to have a negative impact on the fishing industry in the future. Catches may decline due to a breakdown in the ocean food chain. Additionally, demand for seafood may reduce as people become more aware of the impacts of microfibers.

There are, however, economic opportunities in finding solutions to reducing microfiber emissions in the design of innovative laundry traps.

What can we do to reduce the release of microplastic into the sea?

We all have a role to play in reducing microplastic levels in our oceans. As consumers, we can: 

• wash clothes less often (give them the sniff test before putting them in the wash!)
• air dry clothes rather than using the tumble drier. This is because tumble drying weakens clothes and makes them more likely to shed microplastics when washed.
• choose clothes made from natural fibres such as cotton
• fill our washing machines (the more room clothes have the more likely microfibres will break off)