Mullingar rainfall almost double the average last month

Met Éireann's Westmeath weather station in Mullingar recorded rainfall that was 185% of the average for March.

Nationally, rainfall amounts were well above average for the month in almost all parts of the country. At the Mount Dillon station in Roscommon, rainfall of 169.8mm was recorded during the month.

This was 192% of the average for March - an all-time high in the 18 years since the station began keeping records.

A total of six stations in other parts of the country had more than twice their typical amount of precipitation for the month.

The weather station at Dublin airport had its highest amount of rainfall in a month of March since 1947.

The month was "unusually wet and dull overall", the forecasting service concluded, and after a cool start to March temperatures were slightly above average for the time of year.

The highest air temperature recorded in Ireland last month was 17.1 degrees at Phoenix Park in Dublin on Wednesday last, March 29, while the lowest was -4.3 degrees at Dublin airport on Monday, March 27.