Case Study - Beast from the East Flashcards
What is the Beast from the East
The ‘Beast from the East’ is a phrase used to describe cold and wintry conditions in 2018 in the UK as a result of a polar continental air mass.
What are the causes of Extreme weather
When pressure is high over Scandinavia, the UK tends to experience a polar continental air mass.
When this happens in winter, cold air is drawn in from the Eurasian landmass, bringing the cold and wintry conditions that give rise to the ‘Beast from the East’ in 2018.
Background and Location
A period of unusually cold weather which hit the UK in March 2018. The South of England was particularly affected.
Causes of the Beast from the East
A meteorological event called stratospheric warming disturbed the jet stream (which normally warms the UK) – allowing cold winds from Russia to travel as far as the UK.
When the air left Siberia, Russia, it was around -50°C. By the time it reached the UK it was just below freezing, though this was still cold for the time of year. The air mass picked up water over the North Sea which resulted in heavy snowfall when it reached The UK.
Storm Emma was a weather system which originated from the Azores and travelled north to the UK.
On 1st March 2018, the weather front brought blizzards, gales and sleet as it hit the cold air brought down by the Beast from the East.
Without the cold air, and if there were normal or average UK temperatures, Storm Emma would instead have caused wet and windy conditions.
Primary Social Effects
10 people died
Rural (countryside) areas experienced temperature lows of up to -12 degrees Celsius
Primary Environmental Effects
Up to 50 cm of snow fell on high ground
Ewes and new born lambs were buried by snowdrifts created by light, dry snow blown by the strong winds. Many were suffocated under the snow or died from hypothermia
Huge amounts of snow were dropped on the East coast of the UK and in the Scottish Borders
. Up to 50cm (19 inches) of snow in parts of Dartmoor, Exmoor and uplands parts of south-east Wales accompanied by gales or severe gales in exposed areas.
Snow drifts were as high as 7m in places
Many coastlines were also issued with flood warnings
Secondary social effects
Nationwide school closures
Hundreds of schools were forced to close. Thousands of schools were closed across the UK, including more than 125 in North Yorkshire and more than 330 across Kent
Rail services and flights cancelled
British Airways cancelled hundreds of lights from Heathrow
Gas deficit warning from the national grid
Hundreds of motorists stranded on the M80 for 13 hours, with some spending the night in their cars and others abandoning vehicles. Around 1000 vehicles were at a stand still, tailing back eight miles in both directions
Hospital operations were cancelled
Fatalities were caused by falling through the ice and hypothermia, by traffic accidents and falling trees.
Electricity supplies were cut as power lines were damaged. Furthermore the sever weather prevented utility companies from making prompt repairs. As a result customers were without power for several days.
Secondary economic effect
There were an estimated 8000 or more road accidents over the three word days (of the beast from the East). This resulted in a cost to insurance companies of over £10 million.
Secondary environmental effect
Drifting snow led to the isolation of several villages
Immediate responses
Red weather warnings were issued covering parts of Scotland, Devon, Somerset, and South Wales, prompting Devon and Cornwall police to declare a major incident. The red weather warning was just the third in seven years.
Schools/businesses close earlier to allow people to get home
The Environment Agency issued flood warnings for parts of Cornwall’s south coast. Residents were told to expect tides to be around 400 mm.
Some areas provided temporary shelters for the homeless and rough sleepers
The Royal Air Force was drafted in to help relief efforts in snow-hit Lincolnshire. Ten RAF vehicles and their crews transported doctors and stranded patients after local police admitted they struggled to cope.
