Cancel plans due to weather warnings

[scarlets]

Is it unreasonable, precious or flakey to avoid a birthday dinner tonight, at a venue that is only accessible via a fairly dangerous (winding, badly lit) road? The rain will be torrential. It just seems unnecessarily risky.

Just drive slowly?

As long as you have an umbrella you can do anything in the rain, unless there's thunder and lightning as well; then an umbrella is far too dangerous.

I think the OP's point is that it's a dangerous drive to the venue, not that she might get wet.

Yes - sorry for the lack of clarity - I'd drive.

I'd probably assume you were just flaking unless the weather was particularly vile (like snowstorms and hurricanes). Torrential rain isn't too bad so long as you drive carefully and slowly.

I would do it, but what people are okay with when driving is very individual. If you aren't happy about it and will spend the evening worrying, then don't go.

As someone who lives in a particularly difficult spot to navigate in bad weather I'd say stay at home. But that's just me, I can't bear driving in bad weather & friends know when it's really bad I don't leave the house.

I am not being precious it's just getting stuck in a mucky ditch & having to push my car out (in high heels) left me quite unwilling to chance it again.

the road isn't dangerous unless the route is something out of 'Ice road Truckers'. But bad driving is. The OP doesn't know who she will come across and lots of people are too thick to realise that you slow down in bad weather.

that includes driving in high heels! NEVER do that!!

ps I skipped a birthday do which I was looking forward to due to bad weather. Not helped by all the consequent crashes and traffic jams which meant I'd probably never have got there in time anyway.

I'd worry about getting back as it sounds somewhat rural. It only takes a small landslip to close a road and then you might have to drive miles out of your way to get home.

Proper weather warning stuff or just ordinary heavy rain?

Special plenty of accidents happen in good weather. Also not all accidents are caused by the drivers IQ. Nothing wrong with wearing heels not sure who told you NEVER to do that.

Wolfie - proper weather warning via Met Office, plus doom-laden update on local constabulary Facebook page. I guess that these things can be exaggerated though.

sounds sensible to me- that's what weather warnings are for + winding ,badly lit road = cancel.

Could you get a taxi, so you can go but don't need to worry about you driving?

Compromise & get a cab?

special is right though. High heels (and flipflops) are causes of accidents, as both can (and all to often do) interfere with reactions.

Not that it's terribly relevant to OP's dilemma. I'd want to go. Come what may. But if you have a local police warning not to drive unless essential, then the right thing to do is scrub it.

Why would a cab be any safer, you are still relying on good driving in poor conditions. Can you stay over so at least you won't face the journey twice.

My friend once got very cross with me for refusing to go out for her (not a special year) birthday. There was snow, ice and slush everywhere with more snow forecast. And while my friend and our mutual friend had been able to have a snow day, I had had s half hour walk to work, a full day at work, busy because of people who just couldn't get in, and then s half hour walk home. All I wanted to do was have a hot shower and go to bed. Apparently I was being unreasonable not to want to go back out.

If the police are asking you not to travel unless necessary then I'd cancel as I'd feel pretty daft if stranded by floods or an accident saying my "necessary journey" had been a birthday night out!!

True, I guess I was thinking of the cab option if the OP was scared of driving (taking the pressure off). But yes, if it's actually a dangerous journey & police are advising you avoid the route, then hopefully the host would understand.

Not unreasonable at all.

The people who say torrential rain isn't too bad, obviously don't live up here. We've had to take some right tortuous routes to or from places, often getting turned back and having to try a different route because the water's too deep to drive through or or there's debris washed into the road. And that's in weather nowhere near as bad as what's forecast tonight, and in daylight.

In hilly rural areas, and even in cities where drainage is stretched to the maximum, the run off from high ground during torrential rain can turn roads into muddy rivers in minutes.

Some areas are expecting 4" of rain, tonight. That's a lot of water.