Treacherous roads and footpaths are likely to become a significant and dangerous hazard in the days ahead as bitterly cold weather from the Arctic freezes slush and snow, according to Alan O’Reilly from Carlow Weather.
The snow that fell in the south of the country overnight will spread further east as the day continues, he added.
Mr O’Reilly said people have been contacting him on the X platform since Saturday night detailing snow falls of almost a metre in some cases – with people in Tipperary, Limerick and north Kerry telling him they have never seen snow at the levels recorded so far this weekend.
In contrast he has also been handling queries from media outlets based in Dublin wondering what all the fuss is about given the almost complete absence of snow anywhere in the capital.
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“The area around Tipperary Limerick and north Kerry typically wouldn’t get really heavy snow but that is the area that is probably the worst impacted right now in terms of the depth of snow,” Mr O’Reilly told The Irish Times on Sunday.
“There’s people telling me it’s going over top of their wellies in some areas but that’s on higher ground and it’s not everywhere,” he added.
Mr O’Reilly is a weather enthusiast and hobbyist forecaster who runs the popular Carlow Weather social media accounts. Some 385,000 followers across Instagram, X and Facebook turn to him – especially during big weather events – for his brand of relatable weather predictions and analysis.
He suggested that elevation was the most significant factor in the amount of snow that has been falling. “It is very varied around the country but the elevation is making a huge difference this weekend.”
He said there would be more snow as Sunday progresses but the real problems are likely to be caused by bitterly cold weather coming from the north until next Friday.
“There is going to be more snow later this afternoon and tonight and the weather system is going to pull away to the southeast later today and when that happens it will bring snow to areas that haven’t seen it yet.”
He said areas in Cork, Waterford, Wexford and Wicklow would be next in the firing line with some parts of Dublin also likely to get a dusting.
“The biggest difficulty now is the slush is all going to freeze and there will be very little thaw in a lot of places until next Friday.”
He said temperatures would fall as low as minus 7 degrees on Tuesday night and Wednesday night as a weather system comes down from the Artic.
“The footpaths are full of slush now and that is grand but when that freezes it is a different story and the amount of people likely to be falling and slipping is going to be crazy.”
He urged people to be mindful of the conditions in their locality until next weekend when a significantly warmer front is set to move in.
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