Hurricane Charley had already lost its status as a hurricane by the time it reached Ireland on this day 40 years ago but the rainfall it brought still stands out in the records today.
What made Charley extreme was not simply the 200.2 mm recorded at Kilcoole, Co Wicklow on 25 August 1986, but the scale and intensity of the event, during which 47 stations recorded their highest ever daily total, and nine of those records still stand among the top 20 totals today.
Hurricane Charley first appeared as a tropical storm off the South Carolina coast on Friday 15 August 1986. The hurricane became an extratropical low as it approached Ireland and by late on the Friday 22nd the remnants moved across the Atlantic impacting Ireland by Tuesday 25 August 1986.
Hurricane Charley’s path across the Atlantic. Source: Hurricane Charley Report 1986 (available on the Irish Storm Centre on met.ie)
Charley carried unusually warm, moisture rich air northwards from lower latitudes, providing a large supply of water vapour; as it was a remnant of a tropical system. The resulting rainfall was exceptional and caused major flooding along the east coast with some of the worst flooding experienced in Dublin. Daily rainfall totals were up to 190.2 mm at Glenasmole (Castlekelly), while just over a third (of 29 rainfall stations) in the county observed what is now considered status red warning (> 80 mm in 24 hours). Nearly all of the stations reported a status orange rainfall (> 50 mm in 24 hours). The highest daily totals were all observed on Monday 25 August 1986, while on the night of 25th / 26th the Dodder River reached up to the bridge level at Ballsbridge, Co Dublin.
Read more on Storm Charley on the Irish Storm Centre and in the Hurricane Charley Statement 1986. For the extreme weather and climate records of Ireland, see www.met.ie/climate/weather-extreme-records.
EUMETSAT Meteosat imagery for Monday 25 August 1986. Source – https://pics.eumetsat.int/viewer/index.html
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