Oh! Franklin!

Oh – Eunice and Dudley – Is that your Uncle Franklin now I spy? Oh Franklin - now ‘tis you that I behold, What have you done - we’re, all so mortified; You’ve left a trail of harm and woes untold, Flooding rivers, towns, and countryside. Why such havoc wreaked by you – oh why? And Eunice and Dudley? – no regard; Why such threats to life and homes! – oh why? Immense their storms and floods that hit us hard. The sun now shines but winds are strong and rough, The rising rivers and floods now threaten our land; Bewdley, Goole and York - endangered enough, Can these towns your harmful threats withstand? Oh – Franklin – What have you done? ‘Oh! Franklin!’ and ‘Oh Dudley! Oh Eunice!’ were written following three quite violent depressions that hit the UK within four days during February, before moving into Europe. They produced very strong gale-force winds of 80 to 100 mph and heavy rain (2-4 inches over five or six days). Rivers such as the Ouse in Yorkshire and the Severn in Shropshire continued to rise and flood several days after the depressions had passed into the continent. Apart from the flooding each storm produced very damaging winds that cut down power lines and damaged many buildings. Many areas from Scotland to southern England lost power for several days. These two related poems are named after the official alphabetical titles such dangerous storms are given.