Episode 25: Crime Scene: The Weather – Investigating the Damage

On 1 March 2008, Storm Emma swept across Austria. Whilst the Braunau/Ranshofen weather station recorded ‘only’ 104 km/h, several high-voltage pylons were toppled just a few kilometres away. How does this add up? Was the storm actually stronger than the measurement data suggest?

Together with Alois Holzer, head of the European Severe Storms Laboratory (ESSL), we get to the bottom of this question. We discuss forensic meteorology and how, by analysing fallen trees, damaged buildings and other traces, it is possible to reconstruct just how strong the wind actually was.

We’ll also find out why tree species and soil conditions play an important role, how wind maps are created without weather stations, and how to distinguish a tornado from a downburst.

 And things take a historical and curious turn: from a devastating storm at Lake Hallstatt in 1822 to a football cup left behind by a tornado in the middle of a field in northern Italy.

An episode about extreme weather events, a fascinating search for clues, and the question of what the damage reveals about the true power of the wind.