Severe Thunderstorm July 25th/26th 1985

09-02-2018 7:30am

If I remember correctly this is the storm that I witnessed my first sprite is that what you call it ? basically like a mushroom cloud going up into the sky. This was from a distance though. Never saw anything like it again it was really amazing. My friend and I were amazed , saw a good few of those.

sryanbruen · 09-02-2018 7:59am

[Deleted User] wrote: »

We had a good few bad storms between 85-90, 85 was probably the worst alright but definitely there were some fantastic storms and certainly some crop flattening hail.

I remember the older folk saying they were saying prayers that night in 85 it was that bad and a few storms after, my Grandmother included. And not only that they used to go around covering the mirrors with sheets ?

I don't know why the atmosphere has changed so much in the last 30 odd years, I definitely think the climate has cooled and got cloudier. I can remember summer thunder showers and then the sun would come out after and you'd see the steam rise off the roads and buildings like a big fog and the humidity would be dreadful.

Our summers have definitely got a lot crappier.

It has not cooled, the 1990s and 2000s were the warmest decades on record - at least in comparison to decades since the 1900s. It has not gotten cloudier. In fact, it’s gotten sunnier with 2010 being the sunniest on record for many. 1955 still stands at the sunniest year for others. There’s far more sunnier than average months now than there used to be.

The worst Summer still is Summer 1912, worse than 2012, 2007, 2008, 1985, 1986 etc. August 1912 was the coolest, wettest and dullest Summer month on record. The CET for the month was only 12.9c.

Anyway, getting a bit off topic here to the main point of this thread.

That was an amazing video of the July 1985 thunderstorm. I’ve never cared for thunderstorms but my god, that was truly crazy.

NAGDEFI · 10-02-2018 1:23am

Kermit.de.frog wrote: »

I remember this as a child living near the east coast. Not much rain with it though. The lightning was mainly out over the Irish sea.

I was working in Dublin at the time. It started around 11am that Friday and continued for over 12 hours.

NAGDEFI · 10-02-2018 1:26am

There was a tidy little 3 hour thunderstorm in the south midlands on the last Monday of July 1991. It was brewing while i was playing a match and kicked off at 10pm on the way home. The 1980s was full of summer thunderstorms. Never seem to get these type storms now.

10-02-2018 2:03am

Well, I remember warmer days in Summer, days where the Sun would be out baking and then the thunder clouds role in and you'd get frequent thunder showers and some cracks of thunder then the Sun would come out and you could see the steam rise off the road and roofs of houses, don't see this much now be cause we are having less and less warmer Sunnier Summers.

10-02-2018 2:05am

sryanbruen wrote: »

It has not cooled, the 1990s and 2000s were the warmest decades on record - at least in comparison to decades since the 1900s. It has not gotten cloudier. In fact, it’s gotten sunnier with 2010 being the sunniest on record for many. 1955 still stands at the sunniest year for others. There’s far more sunnier than average months now than there used to be.

.

Yes the 90's and 00's were warmer on average but since the Mid 00's ? there has not been any real warm sunny Summers.

I remember better weather in the 80's too.

sryanbruen · 10-02-2018 10:48am

Deleted User wrote: »

Yes the 90's and 00's were warmer on average but since the Mid 00's ? there has not been any real warm sunny Summers.

I remember better weather in the 80's too.

That's because of the frequent negative NAO in Summers, we've had an unusual long run of negative NAO in Summers. You have to go back to the 1960s to find a similar period. The only positive NAO Summers since 2007 are 2013 (the Summer with the notable July heatwave) and 2017 - with 2017 only slightly positive. 2018 is not looking that great either, at least from a historical point of view - I'm hoping it will be much better than it looks.

The 2010s has been the coolest decade since the 1980s.

If you'd like to know any statistics regarding Ireland for any month, season etc, I'm all ears in the Irish Weather Statistics thread.

10-02-2018 11:26pm

Coldest since the 80's ? but I remember much finer spells in the 80's with a lot more days of warm to very warm weather.

Gaoth Laidir · 11-02-2018 12:24am

Amazing that 1985 sticks in so many people's memories (it's what got me interested in meteorology) when it's such a common occurrence every year on the near continent (and even England many years). What's seldom is wonderful...

PukkaStukka · 11-02-2018 1:07am

Gaoth Laidir wrote: »

Amazing that 1985 sticks in so many people's memories (it's what got me interested in meteorology) when it's such a common occurrence every year on the near continent (and even England many years). What's seldom is wonderful...

It was absolutely unprecedented in terms of the sheer amount of lightning strikes and unsurpassed since. An incredible experience.

Gaoth Laidir · 11-02-2018 1:10am

PukkaStukka wrote: »

It was absolutely unprecedented in terms of the sheer amount of lightning strikes and unsurpassed since. An incredible experience.

I remember it well. A real strobelightshow. One particular flash and bang caused the clock radio beside the bed to pop. A transformer on the road had surged.

PukkaStukka · 11-02-2018 1:15am

Gaoth Laidir wrote: »

I remember it well. A real strobelightshow. One particular flash and bang caused the clock radio beside the bed to pop. A transformer on the road had surged.

In the storm of '86, the nearby house of an acquaintance was struck by lightning. The chimney stack was blown clean off the roof and the chimney breast inside the house was split open like someone had taken an axe to it. I'll never forget the clap of thunder that accompanied that strike. It was like a rocket going off and I jumped in the bed with the shock I got. Absolutely insane storms they were.

11-02-2018 1:20am

I'm not sure if I remember 85 or 86 or both, I was 5 and 6 years old but I do remember being terrified especially when the power went out. I certainly wasn't out looking at it lol.

I do remember it being very very loud and never stopping.

What I found the next day particularly surprising was the amount of crop damage in the fields.

Gaoth Laidir · 11-02-2018 1:22am

12Z visible satellite images and charts from 25th & 26th July, 1985.

sryanbruen · 11-02-2018 1:22am

Deleted User wrote: »

Coldest since the 80's ? but I remember much finer spells in the 80's with a lot more days of warm to very warm weather.

I answered to this in the Irish Weather Statistics thread because I really don't want to clog up this awesome thread to do with the amazing thunderstorms of July 1985 and June 1986.

Donegal Storm · 11-02-2018 1:24am

Gaoth Laidir wrote: »

Amazing that 1985 sticks in so many people's memories (it's what got me interested in meteorology) when it's such a common occurrence every year on the near continent (and even England many years). What's seldom is wonderful...

Definitely true, I spent two years living in the tropics recently and at first I was rushing to the window and getting my phone out to record every little thundery shower I'd see, I've always loved thunderstorms but towards the end it'd take constant flashes or bomb-like thunder for me to even take notice.

I actually prefer our style of climate in a round about way, I've lived in a few countries and Ireland is the only place I've ever kept a close eye on forecasts and gotten excited about potential events. When extremes are the norm weather watching becomes boring

Oneiric 3 · 13-02-2018 2:00am

Just to compliment GL's nice assessment of the July '85 storm, frontal maps from the UK Met office archives:

July 24th:

July 25th:

July 26th:

A really volatile set up.

Trebor176 · 26-07-2018 3:07pm

33 years yesterday!

https://www.joe.ie/news/think-bad-look-mega-thunderstorm-hit-ireland-1985-634497

Gonzo · 26-07-2018 3:14pm

Trebor176 wrote: »

33 years yesterday!

https://www.joe.ie/news/think-bad-look-mega-thunderstorm-hit-ireland-1985-634497

I was only 11 years old when that storm hit. Unfortunately it was the last proper storm I can ever remember in this country. Ever since then it's just been a few rumbles of thunder and a flash of lightning if I'm lucky.

The One Doctor · 27-07-2018 11:20pm

I vaguely remember the milkman collecting the weekly money with forked lightning in the background. I was terrified of lightning after that, right up until I lived in Brisbane for a few months in the summer of 2010. The Australian storms were awe inspiring, to say the least, especially with a 88m lightning conductor (Skyneedle) 200m away. Lost my terror of lightning after that, but maintain a very healthy respect for it now.

I remember a very impressive evening of lightning in Dublin 2000 and again in 2017.

Kenneth747 · 27-05-2019 3:12pm

Hi ladies and gents.

The storms of 85/86 were by far the best Ireland ever had indeed i remember them with great fondness but i do recall the storm of July 85 was by far the worst.

I do recall that day been hot muggy and dull and as the day went on you could hear the thunder in the distance every now and again and i remember dad saying that's going to be a bad one when it hits make no mistake about it.

Sure enough as the night went on he was right indeed he even got out the old paraffin lamps ready to go and mam asked him what are you doing he said we will need them when the power goes out and she was like no it will not be that bad and he just laughed and asked where are the matches love,,,, She said over there and then she put the kettle on.

He did say with the two weather systems meeting up and their origin this storm is going to be live i recall the storm really getting going and the really bright flashes of the lightning and the sound of the thunder was so loud then the hailstones the size of them and you could hear them hitting the roof and knocking the pebble dashing of the house and the neighbours on the street coming to stay with each other for comfort as some were afraid and then breaking out the whiskey making a night of it sure why not.

I remember looking out when the power was knocked out the only light was dad's old lamps and indeed the lightning and it was amazing to see how clear you could see around the area as it was like daytime everytime the lightning would flash i recall looking over the fields and the whole sky was just covered with lightning streaks may be about 20/25 in one go and different colors blue,green,red,orange it was amazing indeed and the bangs from the thunder were so loud and you could feel the vibrations through the house.

I can remember the smell of sulfur in the air as the storm was raging on and getting worse as the night worn on it now seemed like this was a storm that had plenty of fuel to keep her lit but i enjoyed every minute of it as the lightning seemed to have no gaps in it as it just kept flashing every second adjust constant thunder and heavy hail it was just amazing unreal that it was happening in Ireland as we do not get such weather events especially with thunderstorms.

When dawn broke the storm was starting to calm down i remember just looking at the sky and the color of it was just so creepy if i remember right it looked to be a dirty brownish color lit up with lightning like something from a movie but i am glad i was able to witness this storm the best ever and i love hearing stories from people about it as it brings back very good memories indeed thanks for going down the old memory lane.

Gaoth Laidir · 27-05-2019 11:06pm

Kenneth747 wrote: »

Hi ladies and gents.

The storms of 85/86 were by far the best Ireland ever had indeed i remember them with great fondness but i do recall the storm of July 85 was by far the worst.

I do recall that day been hot muggy and dull and as the day went on you could hear the thunder in the distance every now and again and i remember dad saying that's going to be a bad one when it hits make no mistake about it.

Sure enough as the night went on he was right indeed he even got out the old paraffin lamps ready to go and mam asked him what are you doing he said we will need them when the power goes out and she was like no it will not be that bad and he just laughed and asked where are the matches love,,,, She said over there and then she put the kettle on.

He did say with the two weather systems meeting up and their origin this storm is going to be live i recall the storm really getting going and the really bright flashes of the lightning and the sound of the thunder was so loud then the hailstones the size of them and you could hear them hitting the roof and knocking the pebble dashing of the house and the neighbours on the street coming to stay with each other for comfort as some were afraid and then breaking out the whiskey making a night of it sure why not.

I remember looking out when the power was knocked out the only light was dad's old lamps and indeed the lightning and it was amazing to see how clear you could see around the area as it was like daytime everytime the lightning would flash i recall looking over the fields and the whole sky was just covered with lightning streaks may be about 20/25 in one go and different colors blue,green,red,orange it was amazing indeed and the bangs from the thunder were so loud and you could feel the vibrations through the house.

I can remember the smell of sulfur in the air as the storm was raging on and getting worse as the night worn on it now seemed like this was a storm that had plenty of fuel to keep her lit but i enjoyed every minute of it as the lightning seemed to have no gaps in it as it just kept flashing every second adjust constant thunder and heavy hail it was just amazing unreal that it was happening in Ireland as we do not get such weather events especially with thunderstorms.

When dawn broke the storm was starting to calm down i remember just looking at the sky and the color of it was just so creepy if i remember right it looked to be a dirty brownish color lit up with lightning like something from a movie but i am glad i was able to witness this storm the best ever and i love hearing stories from people about it as it brings back very good memories indeed thanks for going down the old memory lane.

.

Gaoth Laidir · 27-06-2020 9:36pm

I was looking back at the weather reports for the Irish stations on the 25th and 26th and made this summary. Unfortunately only the airports (Dublin, Shannon and Cork) reported every hour (though Dublin had no report at 16:00 on the 25th), the other stations only reported every 6 hours. Still, it gives a good overall picture of the lead-up to the big event. I will particularly focus on Dublin airport's reports, which showed thunderstorms in 6 consecutive hourly reports.

Temperatures were not particularly high during the day (around 16-23 °C) and dewpoints remained around 14-15 °C. The thunderstorms formed primarily from elevated convection.

25th, 07:00:
Conditions were pretty calm, with just light southeastly winds, and most stations were reporting either mist/fog or light drizzle, though Birr was fine and reporting stratocumulus. Temperature and dewpoints were both in the mid-teens and pressure was around 1015-1017 hPa. At Dublin Airport, mist changed to light drizzle later in the morning as the flow stayed in off the sea.

25th, 13:00
Temperatures ranged from 15-16 °C near the east and south coasts (which were shrouded in sea fog) to 21 °C at Birr, where a thunderstorm was being reported. There was a rain shower at Clones and haze at Kilkenny. Winds were still light easterly and pressure had fallen only slightly to 1014-1016 hPa. Dublin airport missed a report at 16:00 but a thunderstorm was reported an hour later.

25th, 19:00
The action had started. Thunderstorms with rain were reported at Mullingar and Clones, as well as several stations in Northern Ireland. Max afternoon temperatures had been 23.1 °C and 22.7 °C at Birr and Kilkenny, respectively, but only 16.1 °C at Dublin Airport. Dewpoints were still in the range 15-17 °C and pressure had fallen a little faster to 1011-1012 hPa. Dublin was reporting mist again and visibility only 2 km. Kilkenny had 14 km in haze, and Rosslare and Cork (airport and Roche's Point) had sea mist.

26th, 01:00
Cork Airport had nearby thunderstorms in three consecutive hourly reports (21:00-23:00) and Shannon in two (23:00 and 00:00). Dublin had persistent mist all evening. At 01:00 heavy thunderstorms with rain were reported at Birr and Kilkenny, both with 8-km visibility, and light thunderstorm with rain at Cork Airport. Shannon was reporting lightning but no thunder and Mullingar a nearby thunderstorm. Dublin Airport was still only reporting mist.

Temperatures at most stations were 15 °C and pressure was 1008-1009 hPa. Winds had veered to mostly northerly or north-northeasterly and were still very light (<10 km/h). Clouds reported were Cb calvus at Shannon, Birr and Mullingar and Cb incus at Kilkenny and Cork Airport. Dublin Airport was reporting Ac castellanus, as it had been all evening, and Cirrus covering more than half the sky.

26th, 02:00-07:00
Dublin Airport was still reporting mist at 02:00 and first mentioned a nearby thunderstorm at 03:00. It then reported light/moderate thunderstorms with hail at 04:00 and with rain at 05:00, 06:00 and 07:00, during which time visiblity ranged from 12 km at 03:00 down to 0 km at 06:00 (error?). By 08:00 it was back up to 9 km and weather reported was recent thunderstorm. So thunderstorms were occuring in continuously near or over Dublin Airport for at least 5 consecutive hours. Mist was again reported right throughout the morning and up to 14:00.

At other stations, Kilkenny, Clones, Malin Head and most stations in Northern Ireland were reporting thunderstorm with rain at 07:00. Temperatures and dewpoints were still both 14-15 °C and pressure was now 1003-1004 hPa in the eastern half of the country. Winds were light variable. Later in the day Rosslare reported thunderstorm with rain at 13:00.

Gaoth Laidir · 02-07-2020 9:33pm

Whatever about Dublin Airport, Belfast Aldergrove reported thunderstorms for 10 hours in a row, plus in two other reports. That makes a total of 12 hours out of 16. Note the report of smoke (FU) at 9 am on the 26th, possibly from a lightning strike?

The chart below is primarily from METARs, so some of the cloud types are not reported. Nearby Hillsborough reported synops at that time so some clout types are taken from there, where available.

VCTS = nearby thunderstorm, RETS = recent thunderstorm.

Danno · 02-07-2020 11:39pm

Great report GL!

Rrrrrr2 · 05-07-2021 10:02am

Folk memory still very strong of this storm, especially around Kilkenny
https://m.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10227474608439174&id=1482246147&set=gm.1732214606970021&source=48

05-07-2021 11:38am

From what I remember as a small Child even the adults were scared sh1tless, and the crashes of thunder and flashes were relentless and the thunder was very very loud.

We had a couple of years with bad enough storms in from the mid to late 80s and I remember some lightning storms too with no thunder.

All that's changed along with out regular summer downpours and cracks of thunder the last couple of years which I can only imagine is as a result of the shift in the Gulf stream which is most likely the cause of a lot of the Ice melting up North as the Guld stream has moved further West and North and climate experts are saying it's as a result of climate change, as if the Gulf Stream never changed before, everything now comes down to anthropogenic climate change especially when they don't know what's going on, the easiest thing to come up with is climate change.

Gonzo · 05-07-2021 12:20pm

I'll never forget that storm, I was only a young child at the time and little did I know then that event would be a once in a lifetime event. If I ever want to witness a thunderstorm like that again or thunderstorms in general I have to be abroad at the right time.

05-07-2021 12:29pm

Gonzo wrote: »

I'll never forget that storm, I was only a young child at the time and little did I know then that event would be a once in a lifetime event. If I ever want to witness a thunderstorm like that again or thunderstorms in general I have to be abroad at the right time.

Yes it's a shame we don't get Thunderstorms any more, 85 was a big one but there were some decent proper thunderstorms after this up to the late 80s and early 90's and the 90's in particular I remember a lot more lightning storms and believe it or not the first time I say sprites.

I remember being outside in the dark with a friend of mine and we could see lightning flashing which appeared to be going up in a sort of a mushroom cloud in a purpalish bluish glow it was the most amazing thing I ever say, my mate was amazed too and of course when we told the story People thought we were making it up until the next day they said there was a bad thunderstorm over Wicklow right in the direction we saw the lightning but who would believe they would see lightning going up and not down in a kind of mushroom cloud ? at least I think they call them sprites, some years later I say a documentary on lightning and it was exactly as I saw it. First and last time I saw it too and probably rare anyone saw it on this Island.

Rrrrrr2 · 05-07-2021 2:15pm

I don’t remember the 85 one but remember one around June 22nd 1986? My brother was born and our phone was blown off the wall by lightning. Wall was marked for years with the smoke stain!
Remember a few severe ones like late August 91 and also August or July 1995- living in Kilkenny.

Severe Thunderstorm July 25th/26th 1985

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