As Britain readies itself for a heatwave, it is easy to forgot what fierce storms we've experienced this year - not least of those being Storm Eunice. Here, with the help of Ealing archivist Dr Jonathan Oates, we take a look at similarly tempestuous weather from the later 20th Century and its impact locally.

Most people who were alive at the time will remember the Great Storm of 15-16 October 1987. Infamously, a weatherman made the comment on TV that no such storm was expected just before it happened.

Fortunately the storm took place at night when very few people were away from home and no one local was killed.

More than 5,000 trees in Ealing were uprooted in windspeeds of 100mph. Trees caused damage to houses and cars, blocked roads and damaged electricity and water supplies to a total cost of £2.5million.

There were many calls to the emergency services but, unless there was an immediate risk, they were not treated as priorities. Where structures looked rickety, the fire brigade was informed and steps were taken to make them safer.

The police knocked on residents' doors to suggest moving cars to places where they would not be damaged by the impact of weather – such as trees that might have fallen on them.

Most of the wood from the trees felled by the weather could not be sold, but some people found uses for it. Students from the RCA used it for carving and children played on the fallen trees.

Some people applauded the storm for carrying away many estate agents' signs which they thought were an eyesore in the borough.

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Afterwards, there were attempts to plant more trees. The council ran a sponsored tree campaign in which residents could pay up to £20 to sponsor a new tree.

The local newspaper issued tree bonds so people could collect them, and once a thousand were handed in, they would plant a new tree.

Actor John Nettles, who was being filmed locally, planted a new tree in Brent Park.

Less well known to most is the hurricane which hit Acton on 8 December, 1954. Dubbed the 'Blitz without bombers' by locals, one resident recalled the sound as being like four jet aircraft rushing overhead.

Beginning in the Channel, the tornado gathered speed as it travelled over Portsmouth and into west London. Unlike the storm of '87, it hit Acton in the early evening while some people were still at work.

Records show it was roofs of houses and factories in Acton that bore the main brunt of the storm. The 80-foot high chimney of the Royal Standard Laundry collapsed, trees in Acton Park were blown down and the railway line at Gunnersbury was blocked by trees.

Some people were injured, although fortunately none fatally, and Acton council was criticised for being unhelpful to non-council householders.

While in many ways these two storms were very similar, Acton is less well known in part because it is beyond living memory for many and because it was fairly localised unlike the more recent storm of 1987.