Eleven counties have been issued with a Status Yellow wind warning ahead of what is shaping up to be a very blustery last weekend before Christmas.
Met Éireann issued the warning for Clare, Galway, Mayo, Sligo, Leitrim and Donegal will be in effect from Saturday on 3am until 6pm on Sunday.
Met Éireann warned that there will be ‘sustained strong and gusty westerly winds veering northwesterly couple with large coastal waves.’
Issuing their forecast for the weekend, the UK Met Office also warned that counties Antrim, Derry, Down, Fermanagh and Tyrone are in for some strong winds and ‘transport disruption’ throughout Saturday, December 21.
The warning is due to come into effect at 7am on Saturday morning and will remain in place until 9 pm the same day.
FEARS
Alan O’Reilly of Carlow Weather has predicted a particularly windy weekend for the island in the run-up to Christmas.
‘A very windy weekend ahead and some big seas forecast North of Ireland which could impact ferries from Scotland and a choppy Irish Sea for those that can manage to get a ferry home for Christmas,’ the weather expert said.
‘BIG COAT TIME’
A very windy weekend ahead and some big seas forecast North of Ireland which could impact ferries from Scotland and a choppy Irish Sea for those that can manage to get a ferry home for Christmas. pic.twitter.com/dWD4wBuKCx
— Carlow Weather (@CarlowWeather) December 18, 2024
With temperatures expected to once again plummet to freezing in the coming days after almost a week of milder conditions, Mr O’Reilly added that today will be ‘big coat time’ with chilly weather anticipated this evening (December 19).
Friday, will turn midler but rain showers are set to make landfall alongside blustery winds, making for unpleasant conditions as the working week comes to an end.
Temperatures will once again take a dip on Saturday (December 21) and Sunday (December 22) with cold winds and ‘wintry showers’ expected to dominate the country’s weather all weekend.
Met Éireann has also issued their official forecast for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day amid speculation that we could see a white Christmas this year.
However, delivering the bad news to fans of snow everywhere, the weather giant confirmed that current indications suggest that Christmas Eve and Christmas Day will be mostly cloudy with light rain and drizzle.
The rain will be more frequent in northern and western parts of the country while eastern counties will see a drier, more pleasant Christmas Day.
Both December 24 and 25 will see temperatures range from 10 to 13C in moderate southwest winds — it will remain mild overnight with no frost, making travel conditions perfect for a certain visitor on Christmas Eve.
The weather giant said: ‘Current indications suggest that it’ll be mostly cloudy with some light rain and drizzle. The rain likely to be most frequent in parts of the west and northwest of the country, with the driest conditions further east.’