Storm Abigail

Storm Abigail was the first storm to be officially named (jointly) by the Met Office of the United Kingdom and Met Éireann of the Republic of Ireland, on 10 November 2015.[6][7] It brought high winds, rain, lightning, and wintry showers across the north and northwest of Scotland.[8]

Abigail
MODIS image of Abigail on 12 November 2015
TypeExtratropical cyclone
European windstorm
Formed7 November 2015[1]
Dissipated15 November 2015[2]
Lowest pressure964 mb (28.5 inHg)[3]
Highest gust84 mph (135 km/h)
(South Uist, Outer Hebrides)[4]
Power outages20,000[5]
Areas affectedWestern Canada, Eastern Canada, Northern Europe

History
Path of Storm Abigail

On 10 November, a Chief Meteorologist at the Met Office said: "There remains some uncertainty regarding the exact extent and timing of strongest winds but current forecasts suggest that this storm could have some medium impacts such as disruption to transport and so a warning has been issued and the first storm has been named as Abigail."[9]

On 12 November, local ferries were affected by bad weather with many services cancelled. It was announced that every school in the Western Isles and Shetland were to be closed to pupils on 13 November.[10] The storm left more than 20,000 homes without power, according to energy company SSE.[11]

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency also warned of the risk of flooding due to the storm, as the weather system was anticipated to create a storm surge along the south-west and west coast, due to coincidence with a high tide.[12]

WarningForceInformation
Amber11"Be prepared" weather warning was issued on 11 November for the Western Isles, north west Highlands, parts of Argyll and Orkney. A yellow "be aware" warning was applied to the rest of Scotland.[13]

Background
Waves batter Shetland during Storm Abigail (13 November)

Earlier in 2015, the Met Office and Met Éireann announced a pilot project to name wind storms and asked the public for suggestions.[7] The full list of names, common to both the UK and Ireland, chosen for future selection are: Abigail, Barney, Clodagh, Desmond, Eva, Frank, Gertrude, Henry, Imogen, Jake, Katie, Lawrence, Mary, Nigel, Orla, Phil, Rhonda, Steve, Tegan, Vernon and Wendy.[14]

A storm will be named when it is deemed able to potentially cause "substantial" impact on the UK or Ireland.

They will be taken from the list, in alphabetical order, alternating between male and female names. This is the same naming convention as that used for tropical cyclones in the United States. Where weather events result from ex-tropical storms or hurricanes, the original name allocated by the National Hurricane Center in the US will be used.[7]

See also

References
  1. Weather Prediction Center (2015). "North America Surface Analysis 7 November 2015". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved 16 November 2015.
  2. Ocean Prediction Center (2015). "East Atlantic Surface Analysis". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
  3. Ocean Prediction Center (2015). "East Atlantic Surface Analysis". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
  4. "UK Storm Centre: Abigail". The Met Office. 16 November 2015. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
  5. BBC (2015). "Storm Abigail: All power supplies 'to be restored overnight'". BBC News. Retrieved 16 November 2015.
  6. "Met Office officially names Abigail as first storm". Met Office. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
  7. "Met Éireann and the UK Met Office release list of winter storm names". Met Éireann. 10 November 2015. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
  8. "Storm Abigail: First of Met Office's named storms to batter Scotland". BBC News. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
  9. "Met Office officially names Abigail as first storm". Met Office. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
  10. "Storm Abigail: Schools to be closed and ferries cancelled". BBC News. Retrieved 12 November 2015.
  11. "Storm Abigail latest". SSE Power Distribution. Retrieved 14 November 2015.
  12. "Schools shut, ferries cancelled by Storm Abigail". The Scotsman. Retrieved 12 November 2015.
  13. "Storm Abigail: Weather warning upgraded to amber". BBC News. Retrieved 11 November 2015.
  14. "Nigel and Steve among new storm names". BBC News. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
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