| The Autumn of 2000 was the wettest since records
began in 1766. In all, 503 mm of rain fell during this
exceptionally wet and unsettled period. In October, 188 mm
of rain was recorded in England and Wales, followed by 182 mm
in November. In all, the total for 2000 was 251 mm above
the average for this season. Not surprisingly, many parts of
the United Kingdom experienced flooding, and there was major
disruption to travel and sporting events as frontal system after
frontal system swept across the country. |
| The problems began during the period between 9
and 12 October, when a complex low-pressure cell built up over
Northern Ireland and Scotland, bringing heavy rain and wind.
Then, between 11 and 12 October, southern parts of the country
were affected by a slow-moving area of heavy rain. In Kent and
Sussex, torrential downpours occurred, with between 4 and 6
inches (100-150 mm) of rain falling overnight.
Further frontal systems passed over the UK during the next
fortnight or so, as a low pressure cell gradually established
itself to the north-west of the country. This drove belts
of rain and heavy showers across the country and, in some
parts of the country, quite significant amounts of rain fell
on every day of the month. By the final week of October, many
rivers in the country were either swollen with floodwater
or had burst their banks.
|
Britain takes a battering
|
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