Storm Kathleen, the 11th named storm in just eight months, swept along Broad Street and across the canal network around Brindleyplace with impunity on Sunday 7 April.
In truth, the entertainment capital of Birmingham got off lightly. Yes, the wind could be deceptively strong, but thankfully for revellers it came in gusts and only brought sporadic rainfall for the most part during the daylight hours.
The official Birmingham forecast was for gusts of up to 45mph. And there was little sign that Westside had experienced winds as strong as 73mph that were reported in other parts of the country, where planes struggled to land.
But it was still exciting to be down by the canalside watching the water racing along as if it was a river in full flow, with the Sherborne Wharf narrowboats for tourists sailing along regardless, as you can see in our video here.
Watching signposts bending in the wind next to the Legoland Discovery Centre’s brick-built giraffe offered added proof that Westside can even make you feel like you are by the gusty seaside!
The ‘fallen’ barriers in Centenary Square were meant to have fenced off a basketball site, rekindling memories of the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games of nearly two years ago. But no play was possible in the afternoon ahead of a major sporting conference this week at the ICC.
Pictures and video by Graham Young
