Severe weather warnings issued in UK

November 8, 2007 A 1.5m tidal surge is expected tonight in the United Kingdom and could lead to flooding on the Kent coast, according to the UK Met Office. The surge is expected to cause "severe" flooding and the Thames Barrier was closed at 2000 UTC. The Environment Agency have said that there is "extreme danger to life and property" and have evacuated 200 people on the coast. 1,300 properties are thought to be in the affected area.

The Environment agency representative said that they would have extra staff available to inform the public of the risks but are also asking people to check that others are aware of the potential risks, especially to the elderly.

The surge has been caused by the high wind speeds of over 80 miles per hour, and could be over hurricane force, high tides and low pressure over the North Sea. There are currently 42 flood warnings of various degrees, eight of which are rated severe.

North Sea oil platforms are being evacuated in advance of the storm. BP is expecting to shut down the production on its North Sea oil platforms on Thursday. At the same time, Conoco Inc. has announced, that they will evacuate around 500 staff oil from platforms at the Ekofisk oil field.

The METAR reports from Ekofisk Oil Platform are indicating continuously intensifying winds. At 11:50 UTC on Thursday, wind gusts of 57 knots were reported