Storm Gareth to bring damaging gusts

Olga Aughey

A status orange wind warning has been issued for counties Donegal, Leitrim, Mayo and Sligo by Met Éireann for tomorrow, Tuesday, into the early hours of Wednesday morning.

Met Éireann have in fact issued three separate warnings in the wake of Storm Gareth, including a yellow rainfall warning for Connacht, Donegal, Clare, Cork, Kerry and Limerick, while a national yellow wind warning is in place for the rest of Ireland.

As storm Gareth approaches from Iceland on towards Scotland, westerly winds will reach mean speeds of 65 to 75km/h, with damaging gusts reaching 110 to 130km/h. There is also the risk of coastal flooding due to high seas.

Heavy rain followed by squally showers will lead to the risk of rainfall accumulations of around 25mm.

Across the midlands, westerly winds will reach mean speeds of 50 to 65km/h, and gusts of 90 to 110km. 

Local weatherman Cathal Nolan of the Midland Weather Channel says the worst affected areas will be coastal areas, including the north and northwest, which will see the strongest winds reaching between 120 - 130km/h. While here in the midlands, the worst gusts will reach between 100 - 110km/h.

"We're likely to see the first impact of Storm Gareth as a weather front pushes in across the country tonight, Monday, bringing heavy rain. The strongest of the winds won't affect us until tomorrow night, Tuesday, into the early hours of Wednesday morning.

"Even beyond Wednesday and the rest of the week looks pretty unsettled with spells of thundery downpours. The rainfall totals will be well above average for this time of year," says Cathal.

This is a far cry from earlier recordings which show Mullingar had it's mildest winter since records began.

"The first half of the winter was exceptionally mild, temperatures reached double figures in early January. The second half of the season showed almost a repeat of last year, where one week we had 15 degrees, the following week brought snow," continues Cathal.

"It shows a new trend in our climate conditions here in Ireland, and that's replicated right across the globe. It shows the volatility in terms of our weather, and more extremes and rapid changes in weather."