The Great Storm of 1987: infographic
Liam Dutton
Weather Presenter
During the night of 15 October 1987 a swathe of destructive winds hit southern and eastern England in what was the worst storm to hit this part of the UK in almost 300 years.
A huge temperature contrast in the Bay of Biscay, combined with a fast-moving jet stream that was further south than normal, bred a rapidly deepening area of low pressure that hit the UK.
18 people were killed, 15 million trees blown down and there was severe disruption to road, rail and power networks in southern and eastern England.
Gusts of wind in this part of the UK widely reached in excess of 80mph, with Gorleston in Norfolk recording the strongest gust of 122mph.
Tracking the storm
(1) 1am on 16 October - storm just to south west of UK with a central pressure of 953mb
(2) 4am on 16 October - storm over the Bristol area with a central pressure of 957mb
(3) 7am on 16 October - storm just off coast of north east England with a central pressure of 959mb
(4) 10am on 16 October - storm located over the North Sea to the east of Scotland with a central pressure of 957mb
Follow the storm on Twitter via the #storm87 hashtag
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