High Winds in High Places

Mount Washington hit by strongest August wind gust on record – New Hampshire, U.S.

Mount Washington hit by strongest August wind gust on record - New Hampshire, U.S.

The Mount Washington Observatory in New Hampshire recorded a wind gust of 237 km/h (147 mph) at the summit on Tuesday evening, August 4, 2020, as post-tropical cyclone Isaias swept through the New England region. This is the strongest wind gust ever recorded at the mountain in the month of August, breaking the previous one set in 1954.

Mount Washington is the highest peak in the Northeastern United States at 1 916 m (6 288 feet). On average, the mountain sees gusts of about 39 km/h (24 mph) during the month of August.

Strong winds from Isaias knocked power to more than 140 000 customers in New Hampshire on Tuesday. Many wires and trees were downed, blocking scores of roads. During the height of the storm, the observatory registered 237 km/h (147 mph), which officially became the strongest gust for the month of August.

The previous record for the strongest wind gust for the month of August was during Hurricane “Carol” in 1954 at 228 km/h (142 mph).

The highest all-time wind gust on Mount Washington was 372 km/h (231 mph) set in April 1934. This was the highest wind speed ever recorded on Earth until 1996 when Tropical Cyclone “Olivia” set a new record at 407 km/h (253 mph) in Barrow Island, Australia.

Featured image credit: Google

from:    https://watchers.news/2020/08/06/mount-washington-hit-by-strongest-august-wind-gust-on-record-new-hampshire-u-s/