IRELAND IS BEING hit by record-breaking winds today, as Storm Ophelia makes its way through the country.
Trees are being uprooted, electricity lines disrupted and roofs being blown off across Ireland since Ophelia first made land in Kerry this morning.
At Roche’s Point in Cork this morning, Met Éireann observed mean wind speeds of 111km/h with gusts of up to 156km/h. The fastest gust recorded so far was 191km/h at Fastnet Rock in Cork.
Images being shared across social media show the damage being done by the storm.
Met Éireann has said that these gusts will stay consistently strong as Ophelia makes its way northward, and will often exceed 150km/h in places:
The strongest winds are on the eastern and southern flank of Ophelia’s low pressure centre. The heaviest rain is on the north-western and western flank. To the east of the path of the storm centre winds will back south-easterly ahead of its passage north, veering south-westerly behind it.
In Carlow Town, meanwhile, gusts are already exceeding 100km/h.
Met Éireann has issued a status red weather warning for Ireland, saying Storm Ophelia is likely to be the most severe weather event to hit the country in over 50 years.
The National Hurricane Center in the US has said that counties Galway, Mayo, Sligo and Donegal will be the worst affected.
Gardaí have urged all motorists and the public not to make any non-essential journeys. They advise people not to cycle whatsoever.
All schools and colleges across the country are closed, and the HSE has cancelled all hospital outpatient appointments which were due to take place today.
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