Gale of January 1976

The Gale of January 1976, widely known as the "Capella" storm in Germany and the Ruisbroek flood in Belgium, was one in a series of extratropical cyclones and storm surges, which occurred over January 1976. The gale of 2–5 January resulted in severe wind damage across western and central Europe and coastal flooding around the southern North Sea coasts. At the time, this was the most severe storm of the century to date over the British Isles. Total fatalities reached 82 across Europe, although a figure of 100 is given by the World Meteorological Organization.^[4] Overall losses of US$1,300 million were incurred, with insured losses standing at US$500 million (1976).^[3]

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gale of January 1976