Ireland weather: Low temperature warning extended after overnight snow as Storm Bert to bring wet and windy weekend

Cold and frosty conditions are to continue for the next 24 hours with Met Éireann having extended a status yellow low temperature and ice warning until midday on Friday after snow fell in some areas overnight.
It advises that conditions across the State will be “very cold with widespread frost, icy stretches and lying snow persisting today, tonight and tomorrow”. The possible impacts include hazardous conditions on roads and paths and some travel disruption.
The unsettled weather is to continue into the weekend, with Storm Bert due to bring strong winds and heavy rainfall from Friday night into Saturday morning. Met Éireann has issued a status yellow warning and said the storm could result in localised flooding, travel disruption and fallen trees.
“Storm Bert will continue to dominate our weather through the weekend and into early next week and further warnings will be issued for this event.”
Temperatures fell below zero across much of Ireland overnight with status orange weather warnings having been in place for counties Clare, Limerick, Tipperary, Galway, Cork and Waterford until midday.
Met Éireann’s deputy head of forecasting Liz Coleman said on Thursday morning that a band of rain has “shifted southwards” and snowfall was being reported in parts of Limerick and Cork.
“So not much in the way of thaw today. A lot of icy stretches and dangerous conditions on the road particularly when the sun sets,” she told RTÉ’s Today with Claire Byrne.
The Road Safety Authority has urged advised motorists in impacted areas to “avoid unnecessary trips”.
Fallen trees, frost, ice and spot flooding were reported across the south, particularly in Cork, where there was heavy rain overnight, leaving roads “treacherous” on Thursday morning. In Mayo, the Windy Gap road was closed on Wednesday night due to heavy snowfall, while roads elsewhere have become “impassable”.
Some public transport services were impacted early on Thursday, with Bus Éireann advising commuters to use the Transport for Ireland phone app to get up to date information. Irish Rail said trains were operating on all routes as of Thursday morning, though there were some weather-related delays.
More than 15,000 homes and businesses are without power as of Thursday morning, according to ESB. The vast majority of power outages were along the southwest and west, with Kerry, Clare, Galway and Mayo most affected.
Met Éireann said “wintry outbreaks of snow, sleet, rain will clear most areas by midmorning, and southern counties” by midday on Thursday.
“While sunshine will develop, a few scattered wintry showers will follow into Atlantic counties. Icy stretches will linger through the day in places. Highest temperatures of just 1 to 4 degrees in chilly northerly winds, brisk across Munster,” it said.
“[Thursday night] will be very cold with widespread frost and icy stretches. Scattered wintry showers of rain, sleet and snow will occur with clearest skies across the midlands and southeast. Lowest temperatures of -4 to +1 degrees in moderate westerly winds.”
Conditions will improve on Friday, which is to be mostly dry with spells of sunshine after a frosty and icy start. “A few well scattered wintry showers will occur early on too with a dusting of snow in places. Highest temperatures of 3 to 7 degrees in moderate southwest to west winds.”