"Dave Ludlow" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 14 Nov 2004 13:08:17 -0000, "Philip Eden"
Highest hourly means and gusts (in knots) we
Shoreham-by-Sea 74/98
Langdon Bay 56/94

Highest 10-minute winds (not a complete list):
Royal Sovereign 75kn
Lee-on-Solent 70
Langdon Bay 62.

It looks like the highest 10 minute mean wind speeds probably occurred
on the Sussex coast and at least two places on the mainland recorded
mean wind speeds of hurricane force.

If we convert 10 minute means to to 1 minute mean wind speeds
("sustained" winds as used by the US National Hurricane Center) and
apply the 0.88 conversion factor used in the US (65kn -- 57kn), at
least one inland place (Herstmonceux) and most of the South Coast from
the Isle of Wight and Portsmouth eastwards probably experienced
hurricane force winds that night. That, for me, settles the
"hurricane" debate. From the layman's point of view, The Great Storm
was a hurricane.

--
Dave


That's how I feel about it. Although the technical composition of the
depression was not a hurricane. We all know on this ng what a hurricane is
made up of. The fact we had sustained wind speeds of hurricane force and had
the damage that was well in the category of what is experienced in a
hurricane (just ask those in Florida). Well that in my view fully justifies
the term The October 1987 Hurricane.

Gavin