As a person who has done much research re storms with the county weather
book series and my news paper articles I do not subscribe to the fact that
Boscastle or the North York floods are wide departures from the normal. If
one looks back 100 years or 200 years there are plenty of examples of flash
floods.

For instance there were very severe storms in the summer of 1900 including
one at Ilkley with over 137.8mm of rain and great damage. The next year in
1901 saw a tremendous storm in the Maidenhead area of Berkshire, again over
100mm and if that had occurred in a hilly region such as North York Moors
would have been just as bad. Storms with over 80mm of rain occurred 12 days
later in various places.

In 1902 storms in East Anglia and the South east gave nearly 100mm of rain
and hail was intense on Sept 11th/12th etc etc. There are examples for
virtually every year. Even 1907 not regarded as a year of much interest in
meteorological books had flash floods in South Wales on 22nd July similar to
yesterday.
I think yes we are warming but there have always been storms and I have not
even mentioned places such as Cannington, Louth, Horncastle, Bruton,
Martinstown, Hampstead, Holmfirth, where massive rains have fallen-there are
literally hundreds of examples and that is just since 1900.

Ian Currie-Coulsdon
www.frostedearth.com



wrote in message
oups.com...
Paul Hudson from BBC Look North was interviewed on News 24 at 5pm. He
said an Environment agency site near Helmsley (Hawnby?) recorded 70 mm
in 3 hours, with 60mm of that falling in just 1 hour. He said that the
intensity of the rain was of the same order of magnitude as at
Boscastle, not lasting as long though. He said that although flash
floods have always happened, the intensity and regularity over the last
few years seems to be a departure from normal and that it may be down
to climate change. Very competent account, best 'expert' interview I've
seen on the floods so far.