It seems the mid west is in the grip of an ice storm :-

http://www.cnn.com/2007/WEATHER/01/1...rss_topstories

I recall a similar event in the UK when large icicles were dropping like
spears from buildings and powerlines. Anyone know how frequently this event
occurs in the UK ?

Rich
http://www.richdavies.com/weather.htm

Rich wrote:
It seems the mid west is in the grip of an ice storm :-

http://www.cnn.com/2007/WEATHER/01/1...rss_topstories

I recall a similar event in the UK when large icicles were dropping like
spears from buildings and powerlines. Anyone know how frequently this event
occurs in the UK ?

Rich
http://www.richdavies.com/weather.htm




It's just text, I was hoping for a photo essay.

Joe
Wolverhampton

On Sat, 13 Jan 2007 07:13:54 -0000, "Rich" wrote:

I recall a similar event in the UK when large icicles were dropping like
spears from buildings and powerlines. Anyone know how frequently this event
occurs in the UK ?

I remember one in 1947, NW Surrey.

--
Alan White
Twenty-eight miles NW of Glasgow, overlooking Lochs Long and Goil in Argyll, Scotland.
Webcam and weather:- http://windycroft.gt-britain.co.uk/weather
Some walks and treks:- http://windycroft.gt-britain.co.uk/walks

Was an ice storm the cause of the collapse of the Emley Moor TV mast in 1969? I
just about remember it happening and it was winter.


Chris

Alan White wrote:
On Sat, 13 Jan 2007 07:13:54 -0000, "Rich" wrote:

I recall a similar event in the UK when large icicles were dropping like
spears from buildings and powerlines. Anyone know how frequently this event
occurs in the UK ?

I remember one in 1947, NW Surrey.

"ucsdcpc" wrote in message
...
Was an ice storm the cause of the collapse of the Emley Moor TV mast
in 1969? I just about remember it happening and it was winter.


.... 19th March I believe - technically well into Spring but of course it
illustrates that the climatological divisions we use have to be regarded
as somewhat elastic!

Martin.


--
Martin Rowley
Bracknell

In article ,
ucsdcpc writes:
Was an ice storm the cause of the collapse of the Emley Moor TV mast in
1969? I just about remember it happening and it was winter.

IIRC, the cloud-base was low and there was a breeze, which caused rime
from the cloud to build up on one side of the mast. There wasn't
actually any rain.
--
John Hall "He crams with cans of poisoned meat
The subjects of the King,
And when they die by thousands G.K.Chesterton:
Why, he laughs like anything." from "Song Against Grocers"

"John Hall" wrote in message
news
In article ,
ucsdcpc writes:
Was an ice storm the cause of the collapse of the Emley Moor TV mast
in
1969? I just about remember it happening and it was winter.

IIRC, the cloud-base was low and there was a breeze, which caused rime
from the cloud to build up on one side of the mast. There wasn't
actually any rain.


.... this reference:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emley_Moor

suggests that 'unusual oscillation' of the wires steadying the tower was
the cause - no doubt the uneven build-up of ice from whatever cause was
a contributory factor. Several of these very tall transmitter masts
regularly experienced ice build-up without mishap, so it was probably a
combination of several factors which produced the failure.

Martin.

--
Martin Rowley
Bracknell

In article ,
Rich writes:
It seems the mid west is in the grip of an ice storm :-

http://www.cnn.com/2007/WEATHER/01/1...tml?eref=rss_t
opstories

I recall a similar event in the UK when large icicles were dropping like
spears from buildings and powerlines. Anyone know how frequently this event
occurs in the UK ?

An hour or two of freezing drizzle isn't uncommon, but I think that
"serious" cases are fairly rare, maybe a couple of times a decade
somewhere in the UK. Possibly the most severe on record in this country
was in January, 1940. See:

http://www.personal.dundee.ac.uk/~ta...in_january.htm
--
John Hall "He crams with cans of poisoned meat
The subjects of the King,
And when they die by thousands G.K.Chesterton:
Why, he laughs like anything." from "Song Against Grocers"

"
I recall a similar event in the UK when large icicles were dropping like
spears from buildings and powerlines. Anyone know how frequently this
event
occurs in the UK ?

An hour or two of freezing drizzle isn't uncommon, but I think that
"serious" cases are fairly rare, maybe a couple of times a decade
somewhere in the UK. Possibly the most severe on record in this country
was in January, 1940. See:

http://www.personal.dundee.ac.uk/~ta...in_january.htm
--
John Hall "He crams with cans of poisoned meat
The subjects of the King,
And when they die by thousands G.K.Chesterton:
Why, he laughs like anything." from "Song Against Grocers"

Thanks John,

That's an excellent link. I'll explore that whole site when I have more
time.

Rich

http://www.richdavies.com/weather.htm

Rich wrote:

It seems the mid west is in the grip of an ice storm :-


http://www.cnn.com/2007/WEATHER/01/1...rss_topstories

I recall a similar event in the UK when large icicles were dropping like
spears from buildings and powerlines. Anyone know how frequently this
event occurs in the UK ?

Rich
http://www.richdavies.com/weather.htm

I can remember at least three winters in the sixties when this occurred.
1961-2 was the most unusual as it occurred on a cold front. It was near the
turn of the year. Winds were mostly from the northeast throughout. We had
heavy snow on the Friday - probably up to 6" - which turned to rain
overnight and Saturday dawned damp and drizzly with all the snow gone. In
the afternoon steady rain set in and the temperature dropped. All surfaces,
apart from the ground, became ice-covered. By tea-time, ice began to form
on the roads and paths. Next morning, it was snowing heavily again.

1962-3 winter had a few short-lived occurrences of freezing rain during the
early part of the winter. In January there were occurrences of freezing
drizzle and at least one of freezing rain. At Wyton late one evening, a
thaw set in and the ice started dropping from the trees. A few hours later
the noise stopped as the freeze set in again.

The next I remember was in 1965-6 in Bracknell. Cars, which were barely
moving above walking pace, kept sliding gently with the camber of the road
into the gutter. Walking wasn't much fun either.

The worst I remember for walking occurred in the fifties when the freezing
rain overnight had been mixed with a short spell of snow or hail. The
footpaths had white blobs about half-inch apart which were covered with ice
so that the surface was bumpy and shoes only made contact with the tops of
these small bumps. Very slippery!

I recall one occasion in the mid-seventies and another in the eighties but
none since. This could either be due to global warming or some sort of
short-term memory-loss.

Graham

--
Graham Davis
Bracknell