2019–20 European windstorm season
The 2019–20 European windstorm season is the fifth instance of seasonal European windstorm naming in Europe. This is the first season in which the Netherlands participates, joining the United Kingdom and Ireland's meteorological agencies. The new season's storm names were released on 6 September 2019. In July 2019, it was announced that storm seasons would run from 1 September 2019 to 1 September 2020. The Portuguese, Spanish and French meteorological agencies will again collaborate too, joined by the Belgian meteorological agency.
Background and naming
In 2015, the Met Office and Met Éireann announced a pilot project to name storm warnings as part of the "Name our Storms" project for wind storms and asked the public for suggestions. The meteorological offices produced a full list of names for 2015–16 through to 2017–18, common to both the United Kingdom and Ireland, with the Netherlands taking part from 2019 onwards. Names in the United Kingdom will be based on the National Severe Weather Warning Service, when a storm is assessed to have the potential for an Amber or Red warning.There are two main naming lists: one created by the national meteorological agencies of the United Kingdom, Ireland and the Netherlands, and another created by the equivalent agencies from France, Spain, Portugal and Belgium. Additionally, former Atlantic hurricanes will retain their names as assigned by the National Hurricane Center of the United States.
United Kingdom, Ireland and the Netherlands
The following names have been selected for the 2019–2020 season:'Liam' was chosen through a poll made by Met Éireann on Twitter.
France, Spain, Portugal and Belgium
This will be the third year in which the meteorological agencies of France, Spain and Portugal will be naming storms which affect their areas. This naming scheme is partially overlapping with that used by the United Kingdom, Ireland and the Netherlands, as storms named by the other group of agencies will be used reciprocally.The following names have been selected for the 2019–2020 season:
Other naming systems
One former Atlantic hurricane transitioned into a European windstorm and retained its name as assigned by the National Hurricane Center in Miami, Florida:Besides these naming systems, the Free University of Berlin also names high and low pressure areas through its "Adopt a vortex" programme. The Nordic nations of Denmark, Norway and Sweden also name storms with more limited reciprocation. Other nations may also name storms either through their national meteorological institutions or popularly.
Season summary
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from:01/11/2019 till:04/11/2019 text:"Amélie" color:5
from:10/11/2019 till:11/11/2019 text:"Bernardo" color:5
from:18/11/2019 till:23/11/2019 text:"Cecilia" color:5
from:04/12/2019 till:09/12/2019 text:"Atiyah" color:4
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from:16/12/2019 till:23/12/2019 text:"Fabien" color:5
from:11/01/2020 till:17/01/2020 text:"Brendan" color:4
from:17/01/2020 till:20/01/2020 text:"Gloria" color:5
from:03/02/2020 till:06/02/2020 text:"Hervé" color:5
from:07/02/2020 till:12/02/2020 text:"Ciara" color:4
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from:09/02/2020 till:14/02/2020 text:"Inès" color:5
from:13/02/2020 till:19/02/2020 text:"Dennis" color:4
from:27/02/2020 till:05/03/2020 text:"Jorge" color:5
from:29/02/2020 till:04/03/2020 text:"Karine" color:5
from:29/02/2020 till:01/03/2020 text:"Leon" color:5
from:29/02/2020 till:05/03/2020 text:"Myriam" color:5
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from:03/03/2020 till:07/03/2020 text:"Norberto" color:5
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from:01/09/2019 till:30/09/2019 text:September
from:01/10/2019 till:31/10/2019 text:October
from:01/11/2019 till:30/11/2019 text:November
from:01/12/2019 till:31/12/2019 text:December
from:01/01/2020 till:31/01/2020 text:January
from:01/02/2020 till:28/02/2020 text:February
from:01/03/2020 till:31/03/2020 text:March
from:01/04/2020 till:30/04/2020 text:April
from:01/05/2020 till:31/05/2020 text:May
from:01/06/2020 till:30/06/2020 text:June
from:01/07/2020 till:31/07/2020 text:July
from:01/08/2020 till:31/08/2020 text:August
The first system of the season was Storm Lorenzo, when Met Éireann issued yellow wind warnings for Ireland and an orange warning for the western coastal counties. The storm consisted out of the remnants of Hurricane Lorenzo, which had turned extratropical. The next named system was Amélie, named by Météo-France on 1 November. Storm Bernardo was named next, by the Spanish meteorological agency, AEMET. This system primarily affected the Balearic Islands. Cecilia was named next by AEMET, when the agency warned for rain and wind on the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands.
On 6 December, the Irish meteorological agency named Atiyah, the first system to receive its name of the Irish, British and Dutch storm naming list. After Atiyah passed, storms Daniel, Elsa and Fabien were named in quick succession on 15, 16 and 18 December, respectively. Storms Brendan and Gloria were next to be named by Met Éireann and AEMET, respectively, after a quiet start to January 2020. Hervé was named by Météo-France on 3 February, after the agency expected wind gusts of up to at Corsica's coast. A few days later, on 5 February, Ciara was named by Met Office, warning for heavy rain and gales throughout the United Kingdom.
Following Ciara, Dennis was named by the Met Office on 11 February 2020. The agency warned for heavy rain and gales across the United Kingdom. A day later, Inès was named by the French meteorological agency. The agency warned for wind speeds up to in the northern part of France on 13 February. The Spanish meteorological agency named Jorge next, warning for seas high on 29 February through 2 March and snow around. Following Jorge, Karine, Leon, Myriam and Norberto were named in quick succession, on 29 February, 1, 3 and 5 March, respectively. Karine was named by AEMET, while Leon, Myriam and Norberto were named by Météo-France.
Storms
Ex-Hurricane Lorenzo
On 26 September 2019, the Portuguese meteorological agency began issuing advisories for Hurricane Lorenzo. The National Hurricane Center issued hurricane and tropical storm watches on 30 September 2019 for the Azores, which were later upgraded to warnings.On 2 October 2019, Lorenzo passed the Azores a few hours before the NHC issued their 9:00 UTC advisory. The next and final advisory stated that Lorenzo had undergone extratropical transition.
The same day, Met Éireann issued a yellow warning for wind for the entirety of Ireland, as well as an orange warning for the western coastal counties. The Met Office issued yellow wind warnings for Northern Ireland, Cornwall and parts of Devon and south-west Wales. Upon issuance of the orange warning, Met Éireann named the extratropical remnants of Lorenzo "Storm Lorenzo". Lorenzo dissipated above the Irish Sea on 4 October.
On 3 October, the M6 Buoy, located about west of Mace Head, Galway, recorded a pressure of near Lorenzo's centre. The same buoy also recorded a maximum wave height of. On 4 October, while the storm was passing across Ireland, new weather warnings were issued for the counties Longford, Westmeath, Galway, Mayo, Roscommon and Clare. The highest recorded wind gust was, with the highest 10-minute mean at, both recorded at Mace Head.
Power was cut to almost 20,000 homes in Ireland at the height of the storm, with floodings occurring throughout the country. River Eske partially flooded Donegal as result of nearly of rain falling as high tide was approaching. The amount of damage country-wide, however, was less than anticipated for. The storm's only known fatality while it was extratropical, occurred when a tree fell on a person in Stafford.
Storm Amélie
The French meteorological service, Météo-France, named Storm Amélie on 1 November. The French meteorological agency expected wind gusts up to and possibly surpassing locally at the western coast.Storm Amélie developed as a secondary low on 2 November, undergoing explosive cyclogenesis.
Amelie went on land at France's Atlantic coast in the morning hours of 3 November, bringing wind gusts with it up to at Cap Ferret. The storm also brought wind gusts up to at the northern coast of Spain, including a record-setting gust for Santander Airport. Besides causing numerous treefalls and 140,000 power outages, the storm also triggered a landslide, causing the storm's only known fatality. The SNCF temporarily closed a line due to debris on the tracks, causing some 2,000 passengers to be stranded.
After the storm went on land, it gradually tracked north and then east. It passed over Belgium and the Netherlands on 3 November and over Germany on 4 November, splitting up into two systems. Thereafter the two systems tracked generally eastwards, across north-eastern Europe.
Storm Bernardo
Storm Bernardo was named by AEMET on 9 November. The agency expected wave heights up to at the Balearic Islands and several Spanish provinces bordering the Bay of Biscay. It further expected precipitation up to in the form of snow on the Cantabrian Mountains from and rainfall up to within 12 hours in the provinces of Cantabria, Navarra, Basque Country and Asturias. The Asturias' regional meteorological agency warned for avalanches due to snow accumulation. Gusts were expected to be up to.The storm affected the Balearic Islands on 10 November, with gusts up to at Mallorca's north-western coast. On 11 November, Bernardo formed an eye-like feature, leading several outlets to report that the storm had medicane-like characteristics. AEMET did not confirm that the storm had reached medicane status. The storm went on land the same day at Algeria's coast and dissipated subsequently into a larger storm which affected Italy. A treefall on Mallorca caused the only known fatality.
Storm Cecilia
The Spanish meteorological agency, AEMET, named Cecilia on 21 November, warning for rain and wind on the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands. On 23 November, the storm split up into three separate depressions. During the storm, a chemical transport ship ran aground at the Galician coast.Storm Atiyah
named Atiyah on 6 December, giving off orange wind warnings for the western counties and yellow for the other counties. The agency expected mean wind speeds of and gusts up to on Sunday 8 December across Ireland. On 8 December, a red weather warning was issued for Kerry.The storm affected Ireland and the United Kingdom on 8 December, cutting power to 34,000 homes, downing trees and causing disruptions throughout both countries. The highest recorded wind gust in the United Kingdom was on The Needles Old Battery, at. The Kernow Weather Team, based in Cornwall, recorded a wind gust of in Illogan, Cornwall, however, this gust wasn't recorded by Met Office.
The Netherlands was predicted to be affected by the storm on 8 and 9 December, with gusts around and showers. Météo-France recorded the highest confirmed wind gust, at.
Storm Daniel
, the Spanish meteorological agency, named Daniel on 15 December. The agency issued an orange warning for Asturias, citing possible wave heights of at the coast. The agency further warned for wave heights of up to at the Canary Islands, snowfall and gusting to or over. Use of snow chains became necessary on the N-630 road for cars, while the Puerto de Pajares mountain pass closed for trucks, articulated vehicles and buses.The strongest wind gust was measured at La Pinilla ski resort, reaching. of rain fell at Riaño, León.
Storm Elsa
Storm Elsa formed on 13 December above the Gulf of Mexico, whereafter it gradually tracked north-eastward, bottoming out at at the coast of Canada. Thereafter, the storm split up into two systems – one above the west Atlantic Ocean and the other above the east Atlantic Ocean. On 16 December, IPMA named the storm, while AEMET issued wind warnings for speeds of. The storm was absorbed into another depression, named Zelion by the Free University of Berlin, on 21 December.Besides a nation-wide yellow warning, Met Éireann issued an orange weather warning for County Cork in the evening of 18 December for a small secondary depression associated with storm Elsa. The yellow warnings for counties Mayo and Galway were further upgraded to orange warnings at 20:00, an hour before the storm passed these counties. Severe flooding and extreme gusts were reported at the County Galway coastline. Close to 22:00, a storm surge breached the Promenade on Salthill in Galway City; over 50 cars were lost to the floodwaters. Besides the flooding, a ship was also forced onto rocks. Severe flooding was also reported in the Spanish Arch, Port of Galway, Oranmore and Kinvara areas of Galway. Gusts of up to were reported at the Mace Head weather station on the West Galway coast. Treefalls occurred across the city and county, blocking numerous roads leading to Galway City. Around 22:30, Galway City Council activated its Emergency Response Plan and issued a notice warning people to stay indoors and to remain there unless it was of extreme importance. A similar warning was issued by Galway County Council. Members of the Gardaí, National Ambulance Service, Galway Fire Service and Civil Defence Ireland were deployed to Salthill and conducted searches on cars trapped in floodwaters.
Met Éireann's short notice of one hour before the storm hit the counties of Mayo and Galway was criticized. The agency defended their warnings, citing that "the nature of forecasting is that it is never certain " and that they issue warnings when they see fit.
Storm Fabien
AEMET named Fabien on 19 December, warning for wind speeds of and wave heights of. The French meteorological agency put orange warnings on fifteen departments in the south-west.In Galicia, around 80,000 homes were left without power. A wind gust of was also recorded here. A train crashed into a fallen tree on the railway line between Vigo and Barcelona; no fatalities were reported.
In France, the SNCF canceled services in south-western France due to chances of wind blowing trees on railway tracks and around 100,000 households were left without power in the same region. On Corsica, a wind gust of was recorded, besides numerous treefalls. All of the island's airports were closed and the ferry service between the island and the mainland was suspended as well.
Storm Brendan
Storm Brendan made landfall in Ireland and the UK on 13 January, causing power outages in Ireland, ferry cancellations across Scotland and the closure of schools in the Outer Hebrides.Storm Gloria
The Spanish meteorological agency expected Gloria to bring wind gusts of and cold air to the Iberian Peninsula on 19 through 21 January.Storm Hervé
The French meteorological agency expected storm Hervé to hit Portugal, Spain, France and the United Kingdom. The storm formed on 3 February around 15:00 UTC from a shortwave above the English Channel. In the 12 hours that followed, it deepened to, from at 15:00 UTC. It moved generally eastward, expanding in size.Strong wind gusts and flooding led to two deaths in Austria. Another person died in the Czech Republic. On 3–4 February, the storm brought the highest winds to Switzerland since 1981, also affecting southern Germany and Austria.
Storm Ciara
On 4 February 2020, the Met Office issued a yellow weather warning for wind covering all of the United Kingdom across the following weekend due to high confidence in the model forecasts for a potential high-impact storm, although the system involved had not yet formed and no name was issued for it at that time. The next day, Storm Ciara was formally named by the Met Office; in Germany the storm is called Sabine. It formed out of a weak area of low pressure emerging into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern United States earlier that day; the precursor system had previously brought heavy snowfall to large tracts of the United States and Eastern Canada, with tornadoes across the southern and mid-Atlantic states.On 6 February, Met Éireann issued a country-wide yellow wind and rain warning for Saturday 8 February through Sunday 9 February, expecting average wind speeds from and gusts up to and rainfall of up to. Additional orange wind warnings were issued for the counties Galway, Mayo and Donegal on 7 February.
The Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute issued a country-wide yellow wind warning on 7 February, expecting wind gusts up to. The same date, the Met Office issued an amber warning for southeast England for Sunday. The rest of the United Kingdom remained under a yellow wind warning. The agency expects gusting of across the country, with the possibility of gusts up to along the coastal regions. On 8 February, the KNMI updated their warning to orange for wind gusts up to in the whole country. The Royal Dutch Football Association also postponed all premier league matches set for 9 February.
On 9 February, the storm set above Belgium; due to the strong winds, the Royal Belgian Football Association postponed all football events on this day and also the Vlaamse Aardbeiencross was cancelled.
Ciara caused an estimated €500 million in damage in Germany.
Storm Inès
Inès was named by the French meteorological agency, Météo-France, on 12 February 2020. The agency issued yellow and orange warnings for wind speeds of up to in the northern parts of the country.Inès formed above Newfoundland on 11 February. It affected primarily France with wind speeds up to and surpassing on 13 February, while it brought waves up to from the Galician to Cantabrian coast.
Storm Dennis
Storm Dennis was named jointly by the UK Met Office, Met Éireann and the Netherlands Meteorological Service on 11 February, with heavy rain and strong winds expected to affect the UK from 15 February. It was quickly nicknamed “Dennis the Menace,” as a reference from The Beano character of the same name.Storm Jorge
Jorge was named by the Spanish meteorological agency on 27 February. The agency warned for seas up to high and snow from. Met Eireann have issued Status Red wind warnings for County Galway and County Clare and Status Orange wind warnings for the remainder of the country, while in the United Kingdom the Met Office have issued yellow wind warnings for all of Wales and Northern Ireland, most of England and parts of Scotland before it even hit Iceland.Storm Karine
Storm Karine was named by AEMET on 29 February to impact on 2 March. The storm was named before Leon, however Leon developed before Karine on 1 March and so alphabetical order does not correspond to chronological order of these two storms.Storm Leon
Storm Leon was named by MétéoFrance on 1 March to affect the country later the same day.Storm Myriam
Storm Norberto
Other systems
On 29 September a moderate storm named Mortimer by FUB moved across central Europe and killed 3 people.In late October 2019, a medicane formed far east in the Mediterranean Sea. It affected Cyprus, Israel and Egypt. The storm formed in the far east of the sea, something which is not seen often.
On the 10–11 December an explosively deepening storm affected Iceland, where the meteorological office declared its first red warning for parts of the country. The system was named Siro by the Free University of Berlin. The storm dropped to a pressure of, bringing strong winds and blizzard conditions, causing a complete halt to transportation and power loss to 20,000. The storm was described by Icelandic meteorologists as a once in a decade event.
On 28 January, Storm Lolita, named by FUB, caused two deaths in Germany.
On 14 February a rapidly deepening low in the Atlantic affected Iceland, named Uta by the Free University of Berlin. Red wind warnings for the south of Iceland were issued with reports of coastal flooding around the Reykjanes peninsula.
On 27 February Bianca affected France, Switzerland and Germany.