The UK Meteorological Office is set to spend £1.2 billion on a world-leading supercomputer to improve their weather predictions. The installation will need a massive supply of electricity, so a European country with low-cost geothermal or hydropower sources of energy may be chosen as its location. The project will be particularly beneficial to the agencies that work to protect us from flooding. We know that extreme weather events can be sudden, making them difficult to respond to in an appropriate and timely way. Accurate, localised forecasts can ensure that response resources are directed appropriately and sufficiently. Given the rate at which global warming is accelerating, the benefits of this supercomputer will soon exceed the staggering start-up costs.