The violent storm on the night of October 15-16, 1987, felled 15 million trees in Great Britain. Many people thought it was a disaster for Britain's woodlands and for nature conservation. It was estimated that major storms hit the country every hundred years and events like 1987 every 300, which is quite frequent in the lifetime of a wood which has been there for 8,000 years.
The winter of 1998 saw the strongest gale force winds in ten years hitting across the whole of Europe. Hurricane-force gusts caused structural damage to buildings, brought down power lines to thousands of homes, caused the suspension of shipping and ferry services, brought down thousands of trees and caused numerous deaths across Europe. Insurers expect claims to run into ten of millions of dollars.
Wind storms have been the major indicator of change in British woodlands. After a great storm of 1987, the places where nature was left alone had the most prolific regrowth, increase in insects, birds and flowering plants. Natural disturbance added variety to a woodland. A storm is an essential part of ecology. The storm tells us what nature can do for itself.