Status Orange Warning For Tonight Issued As ‘Significant’ Snowfall Expected For 17 Counties

Met Éireann has issued a Status Orange weather warning for this weekend, set to come into effect tonight. 

Temperatures are set to plummet to as low as -6°C in some parts of the country, with heavy snowfall to be expected. 

There is a snow-ice alert for 17 counties – including all of Connacht as well as Cavan, Monaghan, Donegal, Dublin, Kildare, Laois, Longford, Louth, Wicklow, Offaly, Westmeath and Meath.

The warning, spanning 24 hours in total, comes into effect at 11pm tonight.

A Met Éireann forecaster this morning said: 

“Today is going to be a fine bright day, but towards the end of the day we’ll see rain getting into the South-West and it’s going to start travelling up across the country through the evening and into tonight.

"Once it travels further North tonight it is going to turn to sleet and snow.

"Later on tonight, from Wicklow to Galway, North of that there will be snow in places and there’s the risk of fairly heavy falls, especially in parts of the Midlands, Connacht and parts of Ulster as well.

"There is a strong chance of snow tonight and there’s an orange warning issued... and for a time on Sunday as well.

"That’s the significant aspect of the weather really, tonight and Sunday.''

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