22 October, 2010

Weather: we all have our breaking point

For the British, an inch of snow is enough to throw the whole country into a tizz and grind all transport to a standstill. For the Californians, it's rain. We have a weather warning in force this weekend here in the Bay Area. Must be serious! I checked. We're expecting between half an inch and an inch of rain but as it's "the first significant rain event of the season" they are warning drivers to be careful because obviously they've forgotten how to drive in rain in the last four to five months. 

Reminds me of the BBC correspondent, David Willis, writing about the serious storms in LA last Spring which were causing "end of the world" statements from the forecasters. As he said then "six inches of rain is really only a concern if you happen to be less than six inches tall. Otherwise there is a pretty good chance you will survive." So from a British perspective, it's a bit showery right now. Not downpours exactly but certainly damp. You might want to check where you last left your brollie. And if you're Californian, "be careful out there".

3 comments:

Anil P said...

Talking of rain, it just seems the monsoons are loathe to loosen their grip on the city back here.

The irony is - no sooner does the summer reach its peak heat, folks await rains. And no sooner rains threaten to innundate, folks pray for the summer!

Doug Cutting said...

In Saint Helena we saw six inches of rain in the last 48 hours. The roads do get very slippery after the first rain of the season. Our first rain up here was a week ago, and I found my car sliding around the road then in a frightening manner.

Eliane said...

Okay Doug, 6 inches of rain does deserve a weather warning.