Issued on 20th December 2024, valid until further notice
Figure 1 – Low pressure to the north of Scotland, generating windy and gusty weather over the weekend.
OVERVIEW
- A low-pressure system is set to track to the north of Scotland over the weekend generating a sustained period of strong and gusty west to northwest winds across Ireland from early Saturday morning (21st December) right through to Sunday afternoon. (22nd December).
- Met Éireann has issued yellow level wind warnings for western and northwestern coastal counties, with gales to strong gales expected along coasts.
- Westerly winds will become strong and gusty overnight on Friday and will continue through Saturday, before veering north-westerly and peaking through Saturday night.
Figure 2 – 1hr max gusts. The colours represent wind warning levels for gusts from Saturday morning (21nd December) to Sunday afternoon (22nd December).
- Large waves are also forecast for the period with wave overtopping and spray expected along coasts in those counties under yellow wind warnings. This will also lead to difficult travelling conditions in coastal areas. Some fallen trees are also possible.
Figure 3 – Wave heights of 6 – 9 m forecast offshore of western and northern Irish coasts.
- Blustery scattered showers are also expected over the weekend, becoming widespread overnight on Saturday. Some of showers could be heavy and wintry with a mix of rain, hail, sleet and possibly some snow, especially in parts of Ulster and on higher ground.
Deputy Head of Forecasting, Liz Coleman, said:
“We are conscious that this is a busy weekend with people out and about and travelling home for Christmas. We want everyone to be aware that there could be tricky conditions on the road with these sustained winds. People need to take care in coastal areas as well, as there could be some very strong gusts along coasts with wave overtopping. Heed the advice of the Irish Coast Guard: “Stay Back, Stay High, Stay Dry”.
“We are not planning to name a storm but keep informed for any forecast updates”.
CHRISTMAS WEEK
- SUNDAY NIGHT (22nd Dec): The winds will ease with showers becoming isolated on Sunday nights.
- MONDAY (23rd Dec): will be mostly cloudy with outbreaks of light rain or drizzle spread eastwards through the morning and continuing for the rest of the day. Highest temperatures of 10 to 13 degrees with light to moderate southerly breezes, veering westerly later on.
- CHRISTMAS EVE, CHRISTMAS DAY and ST STEPHEN’S DAY will all be mild and mostly cloudy with a fair amount of dry weather and with some light rain or drizzle at times, most likely in western and northern counties. The best of the drier periods will be in the east and southeast. Day time temperatures will reach about 11 or 12 degrees and the nights will be frost-free.
NOTE THAT:
Warnings can be updated. Please keep in touch with Met Éireann’s social media channels, www.met.ie and the Met Éireann app to stay up to date with the forecast and any warnings’ updates.
The timing and location of extreme weather occurrences can significantly affect their impact. It’s important to note that in any individual weather event, not every location within a warning area may experience the same degree of weather or impacts.
When severe weather is expected, weather and impacts at lower levels are also likely to be experienced. The type and level of impacts can be strongly affected by previous weather conditions. When issuing a warning, Met Éireann takes into consideration the forecasted conditions and thresholds, as well as previous weather conditions that may increase the level of impact expected for particular areas.
Windy weather this weekend (21st –22nd December) and an early overview of Christmas weather
Issued on 20th December 2024, valid until further notice
Figure 1 – Low pressure to the north of Scotland, generating windy and gusty weather over the weekend.
OVERVIEW
Figure 2 – 1hr max gusts. The colours represent wind warning levels for gusts from Saturday morning (21nd December) to Sunday afternoon (22nd December).
Figure 3 – Wave heights of 6 – 9 m forecast offshore of western and northern Irish coasts.
Deputy Head of Forecasting, Liz Coleman, said:
“We are conscious that this is a busy weekend with people out and about and travelling home for Christmas. We want everyone to be aware that there could be tricky conditions on the road with these sustained winds. People need to take care in coastal areas as well, as there could be some very strong gusts along coasts with wave overtopping. Heed the advice of the Irish Coast Guard: “Stay Back, Stay High, Stay Dry”.
“We are not planning to name a storm but keep informed for any forecast updates”.
CHRISTMAS WEEK
NOTE THAT:
Warnings can be updated. Please keep in touch with Met Éireann’s social media channels, www.met.ie and the Met Éireann app to stay up to date with the forecast and any warnings’ updates.
The timing and location of extreme weather occurrences can significantly affect their impact. It’s important to note that in any individual weather event, not every location within a warning area may experience the same degree of weather or impacts.
When severe weather is expected, weather and impacts at lower levels are also likely to be experienced. The type and level of impacts can be strongly affected by previous weather conditions. When issuing a warning, Met Éireann takes into consideration the forecasted conditions and thresholds, as well as previous weather conditions that may increase the level of impact expected for particular areas.
Eolas Fúinn