Wind alerts for council markets and winter events
Christmas markets and winter events put gazebos, stalls and sometimes a stage on open ground in the windiest months. Gustline tells the market team which days to prepare for, up to seven days ahead.
How it works for a market team
Pin the market square. Add the stalls, gazebos and any stage roof with the limit from the manufacturer or your market policy. Gustline emails and texts up to five people and five UK mobiles for each event, so the market manager and the duty officer both hear.
A season pass and an invoice
A season pass covers every event on your account with dates in the season. Winter runs from October to March. It comes with an invoice. Councils can pay by bank transfer by emailing hello@gustline.co.uk.
A record for the file
Every alert is logged with a timestamp. That gives the market's wind management plan a record of when the team was warned and what the forecast gust was.
Ice, snow, fog and flood too
Every plan includes alerts for ice and frost, snow, fog and Environment Agency flood warnings in England, as well as heavy rain, heat and thunderstorm risk.
Plans
- Season pass£99 a season
Every event in a season: winter is October to March, summer is April to September.
- This event£19 one-off
One market, show or festival of up to 14 days, watched until it closes.
Included in every plan: wind, ice and frost, heavy rain, heat, fog, snow, thunderstorm risk (forecast), flood warnings (England).
Wind and weather guides
- Christmas market winter weather checklist
Wind, ice, snow, fog, rain and flood for Christmas markets: what council market policies, MUTA, HSE, ADIPS and the Met Office say to plan for.
- Market adverse weather policies: what councils write
What council market adverse weather policies say about gust limits, Met Office warnings, decision times, staffing, pitch fees, snow and heat.
- Wind limits for gazebos and market stalls
No national wind limit exists for gazebos and market stalls. What council market policies say, with the gust figures and weights they set.
- Ice and frost on event sites
Air frost, ground frost and black ice from Met Office definitions, with HSE advice on gritting walkways and where a forecast fits.
- Snow on marquees and event sites
MUTA says very few fabric structures can take a snow load and that they should be heated to 12°C when snow is possible. HSE advice on gritting.
- Fog at outdoor events
The Met Office defines fog as visibility under 1,000m and dense fog as under 100m. What that means for event sites and where a forecast helps.
- Flood warnings near an event site
What an Environment Agency flood alert, flood warning and severe flood warning mean for an event in England, what they leave out and where to sign up.
- Met Office weather warnings for event organisers
What yellow, amber and red Met Office warnings mean for an outdoor event. Each colour combines impact and likelihood, so no colour means a set wind speed.
- How to write a wind management plan
What UK guidance says a wind management plan should hold: a limit for each structure, action levels, who decides, how wind is measured and a log.
- Wind limits for stage roofs, screens and temporary structures
How wind limits work for stage roofs, screens and temporary structures: the IStructE design gust, why sheeted roofs differ and example action levels.
- Gusts or mean wind: which number to plan around
Forecasts give a mean wind speed and a gust speed. Why structure limits are gust limits, how load rises with the square of speed and what to compare.
How Gustline helps
Gustline checks the Met Office site-specific forecast for the point you pin on the map, every six hours from a week out and every hour in the final three days. It compares the forecast gust with the rated limit you enter for each structure and checks the weather alerts you leave on for the event. When a level changes it emails and texts the people you choose. Every alert is logged with a timestamp.
Gustline is an early warning for planning. It does not replace checks on site on the day, the official warnings or your event's own plans.
Set up alerts for your next event