The Great Gale of the Millennium

25-28 December 1999

Background • The Great Gale of the

Millennium affected a large area of Europe – especially the Bordeaux region of France.

• There were 4 storms in quick succession.

• 2 of the storms – named Lothar and Martin – caused lots of damage in central and western Europe.

• The storms happened between 25-28 December 1999.

• Weather forecasters were blamed for not predicting how serious it was going to be.

• The occluded front brought very bad weather – rain, wind, low temperatures.

• There were winds speeds up to 107 mph.

Image of the barograph fromParis Charles de Gaulle airport

25 - 27 December 1999

The effects of the storm in France1. Killed 90 people in France, 150 overall across Europe.2. Left 8 million without electricity.3. 500,000 households in France still without electricity after a week.4. Uprooted millions of trees – 4% of French forests destroyed.5. Electric repairs of £1.2 billion (1.8 billion Euros).6. Telephone system repairs £100 million (150 million Euros).7. £100 million (150 million Euros) to repair schools.8. In France, 1 in 12 schools were damaged.9. Road and bridge repairs needed.10. Transport disrupted for several weeks.11. Historic monuments cost £80 million (120 million Euros) to repair.12. Versailles park & roof cost £27 million to repair.13. Overall damage estimated to exceed £6 billion (7.5 billion Euros)

The remains of a forest on the Isle of Oleron (France)

after Martin

Damage across Europe

• Atlantic coast of France – oil washed ashore from wreck of tanker Erica

• Paris – 100,000 trees uprooted Notre Dame, Versailles damaged.• France – 33 dead/1.5 million without power • Italian Alps – 4 climbers killed in an avalanche • Switzerland – 11 killed• Austria – 140mph winds/avalanche warnings • Euro Disney – Theme park shut/hotels and evacuated • Germany – 17 killed – ‘worst hurricane ever’• Britain – 5 killed on land/2 died in the storms in channel • Belgium – flood alerts as river overflows

• NB. The storm moved west to east across Europe

Quick quiz

Q: When did the depression occur? A: December 1999

Q: What type of front brought the bad weather? A: occluded front

Q: What was the maximum wind speed that occurred?

A: 107mph

Quick quiz

Q: How many people did the storm kill? A: 90

Q: How many people were left without electricity? A: 8 million

Q: How much will it cost for the electrics to be repaired

A: £1.2 billion

Quick quiz

Q: Can you name 3 different countries that were affected by the storm and how they were?