The hurricane, which was not
What killed 16 people during the Moscow “hurricane”.
15фотографий15фотографий15фотографий
Who or what is to blame for the consequences of Moscow’s “hurricane”, as it is necessary to train the trees for the next storm and why in Sochi wind is stronger, but less, especially for Indicator.Ru found out the journalist Alexander Berezin.
As you know, in our country there is a tendency to reduce problems or to objective factors (“the road” from the famous phrase), or subjective (“fools” from the same place). Not escaped the common fate and the so-called hurricane in Moscow in may 2017. “The so-called” because a hurricane it can only be read in the capital and other equally malomernyh.
In reality, according to the Beaufort scale a hurricane starts when wind speeds above 32.6 m/s in the surface layer — the figures that in Moscow did not register even automatic weather station for high-rise buildings, not that in the surface layer.
So no “hurricane” here. Called him this sonorous name is only because of the unaccustomed a resident of Moscow — one of the most windless places of our country, with the average speed of the air flow 2.3 m/s to really strong winds. Because of this unaccustomed hurricane here incorrectly called even gusts up to 17 m/s. In some South Russian cities, by the way, even winds up to 40 m/s sometimes so don’t call, and 16 people at a time they are not killed:
So, it seems, this time people died not because of objective factors. In the material Indicator.Ru emphasis was placed on the subjective. Supposedly, the city authorities did not consider the threat from the fact that apartment buildings surrounded by vacant lots, create wind contraction, greatly increasing his speed, which he began to fell trees. Supposedly block building with a large number of better trees slowed the wind. And deforestation in the suburbs, adding to environmentalists, additionally frees up road strong winds.
This is all very interesting, but highly unlikely. Novorossiysk and Volgograd, too high-rise, and trees there and in the city, and it is radically less. The wind speed is much greater. The average of two and a half times, that is, wind energy is higher at five or more times. Where are the regular reports of 16, or at least five of the victims? Something doesn’t add up, you only have to understand that.
Bad trees?
The storm knocked down about 25-30 thousand trees — and they became the most massive cause of destruction. Concerned citizens immediately found that the reason is a poor choice of species for urban green spaces.
Ash (American) maple, with its not very durable wood called the main “weak link”, especially because they really pushed a lot.
Topol was appointed to the honorary second place, again Recalling his “alergenos” and apocalyptically terrible fluff. In General, the Moscow authorities, according to urbanists, there is no proper strategy of development of the city. The conclusion is not very fresh. Sometimes it seems that it is difficult to find such an event in the life of Moscow, which urbanists would have responded differently.
Have this conclusion and another disadvantage is that it finds no support in publications from peer-reviewed journals. Meanwhile, researchers from France is not that yesterday found that the resistance of different trees (living in the same region) the winds are extremely close to each other. They all start to massively break down at the same wind speed. Even if one oak and the other seems to be fragile wood, the difference in this fatal speed in the region of 10%.
And all because if the tree has higher strength (or thicker) barrel, the less flexibility and more specific gravity, and hence the load at a wind buildup.
Offset one another and some unpleasant crashproof wood, not easy in nature.
“Breaking” occurs not because one or the other is bad — the causes are somewhat different, and this will be discussed below.
Another problem — the twisted root trees — hardly the fault of the plants themselves. Their strength, judging by whole trunks, and sometimes it is enough. However, the city they grow asymmetrically (offset of centre of gravity from homes to open space, where the lighter). Plus storm sewer and 2017, runs fine, not the whole of Moscow. The first is not correct — that is the urban environment. But the second problem can be resolved.
Judging by the fact that in Sochi, for example, rain and wind anymore, and twisted trees less, it makes sense to attend to the copying of the southern Russian stormwater in the capital.
Where did claim to “brittle” rocks? If you think about it, American maple — a weed that is very widespread. Poplar is also not uncommon — the inertia of the Soviet era when they liked to plant in cities. That is often the fell those trees that are the most common. To see this relationship with wood, if only not to draw attention to the prevalence. Most dying cats urban birds — those that occur most often, not those that cats are the easiest to catch.
No, the maple, of course, you need to fight, but not because of its fragility (as we have noted, do not do weather). He just leaves contributes to the environment Kolya, substances that suppress plant competitors, which harm the surrounding green organisms.
The local “Russian” Norway maple, frankly, is also strangling competitors, but it poisons the neighbors at least used to. And with poplar would work. For example, to trim its top, as is consistently doing in the southern cities of Russia. The female then don’t give fluff, and men not so often fall to the ground.
All this leads to a very simple conclusion. The problem of “hurricane” 2017 is not that we have the city authorities do not consider environmental issues or can not remember Moscow.
The real difficulty is that banal truth — the most difficult to assimilate them. Don’t need any smart politician to the roof of the Kremlin is not broken, the pillars do not fall, and stop killing people. You need to perform the most elementary norms of improvement and construction. For example, did not score for the fixing of roofs and stops periodically as do almost all Russian builders in the city of Moscow and its surroundings. Even if they work in the Kremlin. A good idea to periodically trim the trees at a reasonable height. All.
However, these recommendations currently completely useless. In nature, there is no force capable of changing the mentality of Russian builders in the short term. There is some obvious methods to change the mentality of the Moscow authorities. The city has a lot of people unhappy with the fact that the street is now nowhere to buy something on the way home from work. But among them there are few those who believe that the dissatisfaction of citizens can influence the government and demolished to return “larechki”.
A little about the future
The temperature of the planet is growing and will continue to do so until at least the end of the century. This means that from a thermodynamic point of view, the increase of wind speeds on the planet, stable and very long-term trend. So over time, even in Moscow it reaches normal for earth, that is above 4 m/s In the long term is good.
As it turned out during the experiment “Biosphere 2” with no noticeable winds, the trees do not gain the desired strength. If there is not, the strength of the trunks and branches falls so much that they break off under its own weight. Nothing strange in this. It is sufficient to look around to realize that without exercise can break not only the trees but also of our species.
Modern bone fragility was not peculiar to the people of the past, and the skeletons of Paleolithic clearly different from the situation in this regard.
Perhaps this partially lies and the cause of much destruction from Moscow “hurricane”. The trees are simply not enough “trained” serious winds, so when they suddenly they still face, then immediately massively broken, which leads to casualties.
Useful informationthe car because of the wind fell the tree. What to do?
From Novorossiysk to 1928 were recorded and 80 meters per second, and 40+ are there almost every year. The trees on the windy South of the country, ceteris paribus stronger — simply because otherwise they would not have survived it. Break almost always only the old or sick. But city officials, under the pressure of reality, as a rule, also become stronger. When they regularly tears the wires falling trunks, sooner or later they will begin to follow the age and health of those of them that are still alive. So look out for “dangerous” trees in the South is somewhat better, and more clean ones that will fall during the next strong storm.
Sooner or later the “training” smart and those other and in the center of the country. However, if vegetation is an ongoing process, then their counterparts from urban services can significantly accelerate. There is nothing unrealistic in the fact that once a year to cut poplar or finally attend the American maples. All you need to do is to stop blaming the trees, Sobyanin, and other little relevant phenomena. And to engage, finally, specific individuals who have day-to-day work of nurses vnutrikletochnogo forest.
Author — Alexander Berezin