Gusts of up to 53mph have rocked Broughton throughout today, bringing grimaces to the faces of pedestrians and smiles to those of roofers and television aerial installers everywhere.
The winds are supposed to be south-westerly, but disrupted by buildings, slopes and trees they can and frequently do rush up from almost any direction. Similar conditions are expected tomorrow.
One of this area's gustiest spots is at the corner of Melgund Terrace and Bellevue Street, where four local recycling wheelie-bins are notoriously prone to taking flight.
Two of them hurtled across the road this morning, and a third kept blowing open and spilling its contents.
One local told Spurtle he had already phoned the Police and Council. His car last year sustained £1,500 worth of damage from wheelie-bins running amok. He claims that insurers were very unhelpful, and only paid up after receiving a stiff letter from Malcolm Chisholm, MSP.
A single CEC official duly turned up today, but was powerless to do anything by himself and soon left without achieving anything obvious. Some of the bins are the responsibility of a private contractor.
Many locals wonder why the rigid containers – particularly those on well-known exposed sites – cannot be more firmly moored to the ground. They are mostly a welcome asset to those parts of the city which have them. But on days like this, they can be downright dangerous.
Have you been troubled by wind today? Contact us by email: spurtle@hotmail.co.uk Twitter: @theSpurtle Facebook: Broughton Spurtle