Big storm coming

The west of Europe is expecting the first big storm of this year, Chiara. At the moment, it's already going over the British Isles and it's expected to come our way in the afternoon. Wind speeds up to 100-110 km per hour. And at night, it would get even worse, up to 130 mm/h.

All outdoor sport activities (like soccer) have been cancelled. Parks have been closed to visitors and at the coast, it's forbidden to go on the piers. Brussels airport has announced that as of 4 pm a lot of flights will be cancelled as well.

Let's hope there won't be too much damage. I've put my garbage bin (which normally stands outside the veranda) in the shed, as the lid easily blows off. Nothing more I can do, just hope that this old house of mine will stand the storm like it did many times before. The walls and windows are pretty secure, but there is always a possibility that one (or more) slates on the roof could fly away. I remember this happening in the 1980's and when my dad called the firebrigade, they refused to come (they had a big party) and he had to climb onto the roof in the howling wind to fix the slate. I was scared to death!

And... it could be nothing bad at all. Last year they also predicted a heavy storm. Everyone was prepared, all precautions taken - and nothing happened. A bit of wind, that was all.