Britain Battles Blazes Amid Record Warmth
Nearly cloudless skies over the British Archipelago allowed this fine satellite shot, taken on Monday, March 26, 2012. (NASA/Earth Observatory)By Jim Andrews, Senior Meteorologist
Mar 28, 2012; 2:54 PM ET
Wildfires have kindled amid sunshine, unusual warmth and low humidity as the UK experienced record warmth since late last week.Scotland, England and Wales all had wildfires burning on Monday and Tuesday, according to multiple reports.
Daytime temperatures have soared 8 to at least 12 degrees C above normal, as readings topped 20 degrees C over a wide area.
One wildfire in the Scottish Borders burned along a 1-2 km front above the Solway Firth. The BBC News website said it was seen in Workington, England, which is more than 30 km away.
Moorland fires were being tackled in North Yorkshire, according to the Daily Mail website.
Firefighters were called to another series of blazes the burned the Lancashire countryside near Edenfield, north of Manchester.
A 500-acre cemetery near Woking, Surrey, England, was the site of a 17-acre fire.
June-like warmth, fostered by strong high pressure that accompanied a shot of warm air out of southwest Europe, built daily beneath nearly cloudless skies beginning Sunday.
The highest recorded March temperature for Scotland was broken on Sunday, the UK Met Office said on Monday. The ink was barely dry as the record was rewritten two more times early this week.
Aboyne set the new record high with Monday's reading of 22.9 degrees C, only to lift the record still higher after Tuesday saw 23.6 degrees C (74 F).
The warm daytimes will last through Thursday or Friday before temperatures tend back towards normal for the end of the week.
Drought Spreading in Britain
Credit: Photos.com/Greg HenryBy Jim Andrews, Senior Meteorologist
Mar 29, 2012; 10:11 AM ET
Drought, which has put a squeeze on water supplies in parts of England, has begun to spread.Yorkshire has joined ranks with East and South East England, where drought was already under way by earlier in 2012.
Seven water companies serving the East and South East stated early in March that they would put water conservation measures in place in April, multiple reports from the U.K. have said.
In Yorkshire, drought has lowered river levels and soil moisture, but reservoirs of a major area supplier were still at 94 percent, the Daily Mail website said on Thursday. Yorkshire Water was not anticipating any restrictions for the time being, according to the report.
Even so, some parts of Yorkshire have had the driest 12 months since 1910, and river levels are falling, the Daily Mail website said.
During coming months, the warmth of spring and summer will cause drought impact will grow, barring a shift to at least normal rainfall.
In the meantime, drought areas areas will have dry weather through at least Sunday, then rainfall next week will likely be less than normal, as forecast tools available to AccuWeather.com meteorologists show.
England Drought Tightens Water Supply for Millions
Credit: Photos.com/Greg HenryMar 13, 2012; 10:58 AM ET
Tough water restrictions have been issued for 20 million UK residents in light of worsening drought in England.
The restrictions, including a "hosepipe ban" on a range of outdoor water usage, follow two years of low rainfall that has left reservoirs at record low volumes, the UK's Daily Mail website said on Monday.
Photos posted on the website showed dry stream beds.
No fewer than seven water companies, serving London and, more broadly, the South and East of England, have taken the drastic measures, which will take effect on April 5.
This action has followed combined fall/winter rainfall of only 62 to 75 percent of normal within the region's key watersheds.
Lifting of the restrictions would then be contingent upon persistent above-normal rainfall over at least several weeks. Barring this, restrictions could last indefinitely.
The ongoing drought has raised the specter of the 1976 drought, which coincided with the driest summer in 200 years, the Daily Mail said. At that time, severe water shortages dried taps, and wildlife and crops suffered.
Below-normal rainfall will linger through at least the two weeks, AccuWeather.com meteorologists believe.
Winter's Deadly Grip on Europe to Loosen
Feb 14, 2012; 6:08 PM ET
Weekend snow has raised the Europe death toll to more than 500 people as a severe wave of cold and winter storms stretches to nearly three weeks in length.
However, signs of a marked letup in the cold are now clear, as over the coming week, temperatures will climb back to normal, even above normal, in many areas.
Tragedy struck the Balkan highlands on Saturday, when a snowslide tore into the Kosovo village of Restelica. At least nine people were killed when some 15 homes were "swallowed up," the UK's Daily Mail website said on Monday.
Poland suffered the loss of 20 people within 24 hours over the weekend due to the bitter cold, according to the Daily Mail.
Snow loading on roofs has become extreme in parts of the Balkan Peninsula and Italy, as snow depths numbered in multiple feet.
Snow collapsed the roof of a sports arena in Sarajevo, Bosnia, that hosted ice skating events during the 1984 Winter Olympics.
Montenegro declared an emergency late Saturday after roads and railways were blocked by heavy snow. More than 50 people on a stranded train were awaiting rescue for more than two days, the Daily Mail said.
Snow depth around the capital, Podgorica, reached about 3 feet late in the week, and the mountain town of Zabljak struggled under more than 7 feet of snow.
However, meaningful relief from the cold is on the way this week.
Already, as of Monday, temperatures rebounded above freezing throughout the UK and Ireland and into northwestern Europe from southern Scandinavia to northern and western France.
Eastern and southern Europe remained much colder than usual.
Warming off the Atlantic Ocean will make further inroads into Europe from the north and west as a core of arctic cold backs eastward, out of European Russia and into Siberia.
Even with the warming, there will still be a few additional outbreaks of snow, even in the hard-hit Balkan Peninsula.
Cold and Wet Weekend for Western Europe
Feb 19, 2012; 5:25 AM ET
A strong cold front will trek across western Europe
this weekend, bringing about a chilly Sunday.
this weekend, bringing about a chilly Sunday.
The front will cross into Ireland and the United Kingdom on Saturday, spreading rain that will taper off to showers by the evening hours.
Northern portions of Scotland, including Aberdeen, will likely see snow showers and a wintry mix will persist into Scandinavia, according to Accuweather.com meteorologists.
Behind the front on Sunday, temperatures will drop as much as 5-10 degrees below normal across much of the U.K., Spain, France, Germany and Poland. This will mark a brief return to cold that has dominated most of the past month.
In the period from Jan. 25-Feb. 14, temperatures averaged similarly below average across western Europe, according to data accessed by Accuweather.com, with more extreme cold farther east.
Farther south, dry and relatively mild air will dominate Spain, Portugal and southern Italy
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Fortunately, the forthcoming cold snap will be short-lived. High pressure will build in the Atlantic, allowing for a milder ocean influence through much of next week. Temperatures will moderate to above-normal values by the middle of the week and remain seasonably mild through week's end.
However, much of eastern Europe will remain without much relief from a lasting winter chill. Temperatures will stay below normal next week across the Balkan Peninsula and farther inland into Hungary and Romania.
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