Updated 11.10am
STORM OPHELIA HAS come and gone but Ireland will be hit by another bout of heavy rain and wind over the next few days – but it’s NOT Storm Brian yet.
A Status Yellow warning has been issued by Met Éireann, with heavy rain forecast for a number of counties.
The warning – which applies to Munster, Dublin, Carlow, Kildare, Kilkenny, Louth, Wexford, Wicklow and Meath – forecasts heavy rain with accumulations of between 30 and 50mm in some areas.
A spell of heavy and possibly thundery rain will fall across the country tonight with lowest temperatures from eight to 11 degrees.
Likewise, it will be cloudy and misty tomorrow with widespread heavy and thundery rain, with some local flooding.
The weather is expected to deteriorate dramatically on Friday with “very unsettled and changeable” conditions, according to Met Éireann.
Although a weather system with gale force winds and heavy rain is making its way towards Ireland for the weekend, it’s neither comparable to Storm Ophelia nor is it a storm just yet.
Social and online media has been abuzz about the upcoming “storm”, which some predicted would be worse than yesterday’s deadly Ophelia.
However, meteorologist with Met Éireann Harm Luijkx says that the service hasn’t yet determined if the weather pattern Invest 92L will be a storm by the time it hits Irish shores.
The incoming bad weather will make its way in slowly on Friday, as the day will start off mostly dry and calm with sunny spells.
Quickly changing, wet and windy weather is expected to move up from the southwest through the afternoon and evening.
Temperatures will range between 12 and 14 degrees but will feel cooler as the rain and winds strengthen from the southeast.
It will be extremely wet and windy overnight on Friday, with risk of local flooding and strong to gale force winds will continue in from the southeast.
Continuing on, Saturday will be extremely wet and windy for much of the day, with strong to gale force northwesterly winds.
Easing up in the evening, rain should give way to more showery weather in the evening and winds will slow down. Despite the ease in conditions, Met Éireann says further spot flooding is likely.
Despite the horrible outlook for the weekend, Luijkx told TheJournal.ie that it’s not yet certain that Invest 92L will be an actual storm by the time it hits Ireland.
It’s too early to call. At the moment it doesn’t look too severe and not comparable at all to Storm Ophelia.
“Naming a storm is a decision between Met Éireann and the UK Met Office. This is definitely not named as a storm yet.”
The next named storm in Ireland will be named Brian, after last month’s storm Aileen. However, this particular pattern hasn’t been named yet.
Yesterday, Met Éireann tweeted that naming storms is a decision made jointly by themselves and the UK Met office on the basis of objective criteria.
“It’s a depression that will track just south of us, but it doesn’t look too extreme,” Luijkx said.
We will make a decision (on naming) around two days before, when we have clear information. We will issue guidance when it’s time to.
With reporting by Paul Hosford, Sean Murray
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