thetruthisoutthere 109 Posted March 27, 2013 The weather was predicted and so some precautions should have been taken.......I also wonder why it has been left until Monday & Tuesday of this week before asking for assistance.....I for one was off over the weekend and would have gladly helped. Unfortunately unable to on a weekday as I work!! Yet again....to little too late!! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WTF 5,403 Posted March 27, 2013 It takes days to clear the mountain of sheep, and you need somewhere to put them and have food. No farmer expects to be feeding a 1000 sheep indoors in the spring, weather forecast or not. Townies haven't a fucking clue! It will also take days for the farmer to even discover where his sheep have holed up, on the mountain that is a big hide and seek game, no good asking for help digging if you don't know where to dig! 7 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tugger 911 Posted March 27, 2013 I'm sure I remember that back in the Chernobyl days certain farmers were very quick to move large numbers of sheep around Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
interestedman 345 Posted March 27, 2013 What the hell were the farmers of this island thinking of? pregnant sheep left out in exposed places when a bloody blizzard is forecast? then whingeing because they find them dead. what the hell did you think was going to happen? how much does a simple shelter cost? if I did that to my dog I would be prosecuted and not allowed to keep any more animals. why are the MSPCA not up in arms about this? Why are these people allowed to keep animals? maybe we should look again at laws to protect animals on his island, and impose stiffer penalties for people who allow this to happen. You are an absolute moron. 5 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
conradthewoollyllama 33 Posted March 27, 2013 1) The extent of the snow wasn't predicted, plus it rarely stays this snowy for this long on the IOM. One or two days tops, obviously longer on higher ground but it wouldn't be as deep. I can't remember the last time it snowed continuously for that long. 2) Why on earth would the farmers be going out of their way to damage their livelihood? 3) Do you understand the practicalities of 'taking in' hundreds of livestock? 4) As mentioned it takes time to locate the stock. They're not going to ask people to come and dig the snow of the whole mountain, are they? 5) Nuclear radiation is a slightly different issue to a bit of snow being forecast. It was clear that that would require them to be moved. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GringoQ 15 Posted March 27, 2013 It's a real shame, the price of Lamb is going to be sky high this year and I like Manx spring lamb on a Sunday or in a nice curry. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tugger 911 Posted March 27, 2013 5. The reference was to an illicit movement of livestock, in order to be able to continue to sell people contaminated sheep. When the incentives are right, action can be taken quickly! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
La_Dolce_Vita 750 Posted March 27, 2013 Maybe vikingdoom is LDV's Love Child ? What a goof you are. How are our posts connected? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
loaf 46 Posted March 27, 2013 It's a real shame, the price of Lamb is going to be sky high this year and I like Manx spring lamb on a Sunday or in a nice curry. Apparently you can get frozen quite cheaply if you know where to look. 3 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HeliX 1,727 Posted March 27, 2013 (edited) Part of the problem is that farmers, in order to make a reasonable amount of money, need to have much more livestock than they can reasonably find shelter for. Something like this was bound to happen. (I'm not saying this is farmer's faults, it's a fault with society as a whole. We eat + waste more meat than we should, by a long way) As for the people saying "Oh they should have known it was going to snow" are you serious? Yes, we all knew it was going to snow. I don't think anyone anticipated 10foot snow drifts though, did they? You don't need to do much prep to protect animals from "a bit of snow". You have to do an amount that simply isn't possible in a few days to protect them against 10foot drifts. Edited March 27, 2013 by HeliX 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Shake me up Judy 4,617 Posted March 27, 2013 We haven't had snow like this for fifty years. To argue that farmers should have been better prepared is stretching things a bit. It's been a tough and bitter week for them but Manx farmers are a canny breed and rest assured they'll be well looked after when the counting begins. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
trmpton 853 Posted March 27, 2013 The local weather forecasters should be taking some of the blame for this, and the fact that people didn't buy extra supplies of batteries, food etc. The national weather forecast was for snow at all levels, the local guys decided to confidently tell everyone there maybe accumulations at high levels. People keep disputing this, and maybe some of their forecast were more accurate, but I heard it myself on Manx Radio on Thursday afternoon and though how brave they were based on everything else I had seen. Quote from front Page of Manx Independent March 21 2013 "More snow on hills tomorrow THE weather is set to get a lot colder tomorrow. Earlier in the week, there was snow on the hills, as photographer Murray Lambden found when he pictured the Creg-Ny-Baa Fell Race. There is a chance of snow at the top of the hills again tomorrow (Friday), but the chances the disruption from snow on lower levels is slim. The Met Office says snow or sleet is expected on Friday above 500 to 600 feet on the higher level. It will start to rain tonight and throughout Friday the weather is going to be cold, with the chance of an inch of rain falling on lower levels. David Boultbee from the Met Office said: "The gales rain/sleet and snow will continue through Friday then a gradual improvement is expected during Saturday although it will stay cold" The sleet will gradually die out on Saturday" Hardly the weather warning issued in other parts of Britain, and I'm not sure what made them so confident that they could disregard what every other British forecast was saying 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
When Skies Are Grey 900 Posted March 27, 2013 Yeah and if they had issued stronger weather warning we would all have moaned about typical Manx over reaction..... The benefit of hindsight is that its always 20/20 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
trmpton 853 Posted March 27, 2013 Yeah and if they had issued stronger weather warning we would all have moaned about typical Manx over reaction..... The benefit of hindsight is that its always 20/20 This isn't hindsight. I heard the forecast on the local Radio, read the forecast in the local paper, then compared it to the national ones and wondered what the hell they were on about. I follow Metcheck etc and was fully expecting snow on friday despite what the local Met Office were saying. Anyone who had only heard the garbage they were spouting would have been surprised and caught unprepared. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
We Like The Moon 93 Posted March 27, 2013 Wow I can't believe the negativity here, people are losing their livlihoods. I live in michael and yes we were expecting snow, 10-15cm of snow, not 10-15 ft of snow. People over this side of the island have gone through hell this weekend, that most of you, unless you were here just couldn't comprehend. I am proud of the community spirit i have witnessed over the last few days. The people out there helping the farmers, supporting their community in a time of need. Do you know what a sense of achievement it is to pull a living lamb out of a ten foot snow drift after being trapped for 4 days..... 10 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
