Storm Ellen certainly made itself felt

The effect of Storm Ellen was very noticeable on Friday as we experienced a very windy day with frequent gusts well over 30mph and a peak gust of 44mph at 13.55. This was the strongest gust in August that I have recorded since the station started in 1984. The previous August record was set in 2019 with a maximum gust of 38mph on the 10th.

No rain fell in the past twenty-four hours even though showers were prevalent around the country. The August rainfall total now stands at 28.5mm with a 36-year average of 66.7mm. Evaporation far exceeds what has seemed a very wet few days with the equivalent of 59mm of rainfall lost to the atmosphere.

The thermometer rose just above the average during the daytime on Friday with a maximum of 21.1C (+0.1C) then another mild night that produced a minimum of 13.7C (+2.1C).

Today is definitely Saturday that saw bright periods after dawn with the wind, thankfully, much subdued with a peak gust in the last hour or two of 15mph, now from the westsouthwest. By 08.00 there were breaks in the cloud that allowed the sun to appear.

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