2023-11-10 15:08:10
From November 9 to 13, 2010:
During this period, heavy precipitation falls over large parts of the regions, with the most intense rains recorded during the last two days. The amounts of rain measured during these 5 days vary between 84.2 mm and 145.1 mm depending on the location, knowing that the provinces of Liège and Luxembourg were the most spared. In detail and by province, this gives maximum accumulations of:
145.1 mm in Petite-Chapelle (Couvin) in the province of Namur 128.5 mm in Chastre-Blanmont (Chastre) in Walloon Brabant 114.7 mm in Wortegem (Wortegem-Petegem) in East Flanders 108.4 mm in Lanaken in Limburg 106.5 mm in Brussegem (Merchtem) in Flemish Brabant 103.3 mm in Oevel (Westerlo) in the province of Antwerp 100.6 mm in Uccle in the Brussels-Capital Region 92.6 mm in Thimougies (Tournai ) in Hainaut and 89.5 mm in Kerkhove (Avelgem) in West Flanders.
Unsurprisingly, these heavy rains cause flooding as well as a lot of material damage.
It’s the latest spring day in Uccle. But what exactly does a spring day mean? According to the definition given by the Royal Meteorological Institute, “a spring day is a day when the maximum temperature equals or exceeds 20°C”. This was the case with 20.3°C recorded in the Uccle station. Elsewhere also, thermometers indicated values above 20°C that day:
– 21.0°C in Thimister (Thimister-Clermont)
– 20.5°C in Grammont and Ernage (Gembloux)
– and 20.2°C in Stavelot.
The month of November is considered the “month of storms”. So on the night of November 13 to 14, a violent storm hit our country with extremely intense winds. The wind blew up to 155 km/h in Uccle, this is the highest wind gust ever measured in this station. Generally speaking, this storm left its mark since it is the most remarkable storm of the 20th century! Fortunately, no deaths were reported following this storm, but the damage was numerous, especially in the regions of Antwerp and Brussels, where the Sonian forest was particularly affected.
This date marks the end of three notably windy days, with gusts not breaking a record but still very high: the anemometers recorded gusts of up to 147 km/h in Deurne (Antwerp), 144 km/h in Liège, 143 km/h in Uccle, 140 km/h in Ostend and 126 km/h in Saint-Hubert.
Intense cold sets in across all regions and temperatures plunge below 0°C. For example, the mercury fell to -12.2°C in Stavelot, -11.3°C in Kleine-Brogel (Peer), -7.3°C in Zaventem and -7.1°C in Koksijde . In the Ardennes valleys, the cold is particularly bitter and the minimum value even drops below 15°C, with -15.6°C recorded in Elsenborn (Butgenbach), which has not happened for 10 years! We actually have to go back to November 22, 1988 when we measured -15.3°C.
A violent storm blew through the kingdom for three consecutive days, causing the death of around ten people and significant damage north of the Sambre-et-Meuse valley. Wind gusts of up to 151 km/h are recorded in Uccle, this is to date the 2nd strongest gust recorded at the reference station. The wind reached 140 km/h in two stations: in Chièvres and in Antwerp (Cauwelaertsluis).
Significant snowfall was noted in the center of the country, giving rise to a layer of 40 cm in Beauvechain and Gembloux, 34 cm in Ottignies and Uccle. This is also the second highest value of the century (tied with 1925). However, this winter will not necessarily be very cold followingwards.
The whole month was very cold overall and this is confirmed by the average temperature which did not exceed 1.8°C, whereas it normally reaches 5.8°C. November 1921 is also at the top of the coldest November months of the 20th century. Another notable record: the minimum temperature fell to -11°C during the night of November 29 to 30 in Uccle. This is also the lowest temperature ever recorded for this station and for the month of November.
That year was also marked by the low frequency of days of precipitation during the fall: there were only 27, while a normal fall season had 52.1 days of rain, making it the fall with the fewer days of precipitation this century.
Snow fell in abundance during the last ten days of this month, giving an exceptional layer of 34 cm in Uccle, measured on November 29 and 30. This is the second highest snowfall value for this century. The snow cover is also remarkable in other resorts in the country, up to 62 cm of snow was measured in Drossart (Baelen) in the Hertogenwald, 50 cm in Bastogne and 44 cm at the Gileppe dam (Jalhay). The snow will even be paralyzing for several villages which will find themselves isolated for several days, like Felenne, in the commune of Beauraing. Overall, these snowy landscapes will last until mid-December.
The last decade of this month is remarkably cold and for good reason, the average temperature is only -1.8°C during these last 10 days of November. This is the coldest decade of all the decades of November. We recorded 6 days of winter during this period, that is to say a day where the maximum temperature is below 0°C; according to the MRI definition.
Another exceptional fact: in addition to the ice, it snowed heavily in the central regions during the evening rush hour, which seriously complicated traffic on the roads. This was the case on the Brussels Ring Road where many people were even forced to abandon their vehicles on site, as the snow was hampering traffic.
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