Articles | Volume 25, issue 7
https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-25-2179-2025
https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-25-2179-2025
Research article
 | 
04 Jul 2025
Research article |  | 04 Jul 2025

Tree fall along railway lines: modelling the impact of wind and other meteorological factors

Rike Lorenz, Nico Becker, Barry Gardiner, Uwe Ulbrich, Marc Hanewinkel, and Benjamin Schmitz

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Cited articles

Akay, A. E. and Taş, İ.: Mapping the risk of winter storm damage using GIS-based fuzzy logic, J. Forest. Res., 31, 729–742, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11676-019-00904-1, 2019. 
Albrecht, A., Hanewinkel, M., Bauhus, J. and Kohnle, U.: How does silviculture affect storm damage in forests of south-western Germany? Results from empirical modeling based on long-term observations, Eur. J. Forest Res., 131, 229–247, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10342-010-0432-x, 2012. 
Albrecht, A. T., Jung, C., and Schindler, D.: Improving empirical storm damage models by coupling with high-resolution gust speed data, Agr. Forest Meteorol., 268, 23–31, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2018.12.017, 2019. 
Ancelin, P., Courbaud, B., and Fourcaud, T.: Development of an individual tree-based mechanical model to predict wind damage within forest stands, Forest Ecol. Manage., 203, 101–121, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2004.07.067, 2004. 
Bartels, H., Weigl, E., Reich, T., Lang, P., Wagner, A., Kohler, O., and Gerlach, N.: Routineverfahren zur Online-Aneichung der Radarniederschlagsdaten mit Hilfe von automatischen Bodenniederschlagsstationen (Ombrometer), DWD, 111, 2004. 
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Short summary
Tree fall events have an impact on forests and transport systems. Our study explored tree fall in relation to wind and other weather conditions. We used tree fall data along railway lines and ERA5 and radar meteorological data to build a logistic regression model. We found that high and prolonged wind speeds, wet conditions, and high air density increase tree fall risk. These factors might change in the changing climate, which in return will change risks for trees, forests and transport.
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