Gale of January 1976

"Capella" storm

Flood height marker Blankenese, Hamburg
Type	European windstorm, extratropical, extratropical storm surge
Formed	1 January 1976
Dissipated	5 January 1976
Lowest pressure	962 hPa (28.4 inHg)
Highest gust	116 kn (215 km/h; 133 mph) Lowther Hills, Strathclyde Scotland
Areas affected	Ireland, United Kingdom, Belgium, France, Denmark, West Germany, East Germany, Netherlands, Switzerland, Austria, Italy, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary and Yugoslavia

The Gale of January 1976, widely known as the "Capella" storm in Germany and the Ruisbroek flood in Belgium, was one in a series of extratropical cyclones and storm surges, which occurred over January 1976. The gale of 2–5 January resulted in severe wind damage across western and central Europe and coastal flooding around the southern North Sea coasts. At the time, this was the most severe storm of the century to date over the British Isles. Total fatalities reached 82 across Europe, although a figure of 100 is given by the World Meteorological Organization. Of these 24 were reported in Britain and 4 in Ireland. Overall losses of US$1,300 million were incurred, with insured losses standing at US$500 million (1976).

December 1975 saw a deep low persisting over the northern Barents Sea with a high north of the Azores and west of Biscay, which enhanced a strong westerly flow over northern Europe. This anomalously strong westerly flow over the North Atlantic saw a low pressure maintained in the central Atlantic in association with an almost stationary upper trough. During the afternoon of 1 January, a depression broke away from this central Atlantic low from the SW of the Azores in a frontal wave, transporting a mass of warm and moist air and moved quickly northeast, to be centred 150 kilometres (90 mi) north-west of Malin Head Ireland, by midday on 2 January. On its journey, the system rapidly deepened, powered by an in-draught of cold air from the north which supplied temperature contrast powering explosive development. The low then passed eastwards, crossing central Scotland out into the North Sea to reach northern Denmark by the morning of 3 January. The central pressure reached a minimum of 962 hPa in the eastern North Sea. After crossing the North Sea, the low elongated over the southern Baltic Sea, with the centre stretching from Denmark to the Gulf of Gdańsk, with an occluded front stretching parallel to the southern Baltic Sea coast. The low then coalesced with a secondary low which had formed in its wake, taking an elongated form over Denmark and the southern Baltic Sea.