Seven counties are set to be battered by extreme winds, as Storm Darragh reaches the country.
Galway, Clare, Mayo, Donegal, Leitrim, Sligo and Wicklow have been hit with red weather warnings as a result of the storm, which will come into effect on Friday night/Saturday morning.
A number of measures have been taken by shops, electric networks and Uisce Éireann, to ensure minimal damage to infrastructure — particularly as the country sits down for the Late Late Toy Show on Friday night.
WEATHER WARNINGS
Galway, Clare, Mayo, Donegal, Leitrim, Sligo and Wicklow are hit with red weather warnings from Storm Darragh, while the rest of the country will be under an orange weather warning.
The red warnings will hit Galway, Mayo and Clare at first, beginning at 9pm and lasting until 2am on Saturday morning (Galway and Clare) and 3am (Mayo). Donegal, Leitrim and Sligo’s red warning will begin at 10pm on Friday, and will last at 3am on Saturday morning.
Finally, at 1am on Saturday morning, the red warning will reach Wicklow and will stay in effect until 6am. Potential impacts of the red warnings include fallen trees, damage to power lines, dangerous travel conditions and structural damage.
The rest of the weather warnings, including an orange wind warning and yellow rain warning for the entire country, will finally dissipate at around 3pm on Saturday.
SHOPS CLOSING
Aldi have announced that they will be closing their shops in Galway, Mayo and Clare an hour earlier at 9pm on Friday night, for safety reasons ahead of the storm.
‘Customer notice: Due to the red weather warning in Clare, Galway and Mayo, all Aldi stores in these counties will close at 21:00 tonight to allow staff and customers to get home safely,’ the store wrote on Facebook.
ESB AND UISCE ÉIREANN
Both the ESB and Uisce Éireann have warned about the storm, with ESB Network crews and partner contractors around the country making necessary preparations ahead of the storm. They added that they will be continually monitoring the forecasts and real-time events on the electricity network, and will be deploying crews to restore supply when it’s safe to do so.
Once the storm finishes and the dust settles, ESB have said that they’re going to mobilise from early morning to assess the damages, making the network safe — as well as restoring electricity supply, switching customers back on remotely where possible. They will also update estimated power restoration times as soon as they’ve assessed the network; available to view HERE.
Uisce Éireann have also begun putting in measures to ensure minimal damage to pipes during the storm, admitting that there is likely to be disruption to water and wastewater services in certain locations, particularly if electricity supply is affected. In response, Uisce Éireann has activated its emergency response processes, including deploying generators at key sites where power outages are likely.
Should there be any impact on water supply, Uisce Éireann will have crews on the ground throughout the weekend to restore supply as quickly as possible.
In the event of a loss of supply, most properties should have adequate storage in their attic tanks for hygiene purposes for at least 24 hours. There are some simple steps people can take to conserve their water, such as avoiding the use of water-intensive appliances during this time.
‘With the red weather warning coming into place for some counties this evening, Uisce Éireann has stood up its emergency management teams and we will be closely monitoring the impact of the storm on water supplies,’ Margaret Attridge, Head of Water Operations with Uisce Éireann, said.
‘While we have put contingency measures in place, such as backup generators, it is likely there will be some disruption to supplies, particularly in locations where power is out. If this happens, our crews will be deployed once it is safe to do so to restore supply as quickly as possible.
‘In the meantime, I would remind customers to check our website and social media channels for updates and to get in touch with any issues or concerns via our 24/7 customer care centre at 1800 278 278. People can also sign up online to our free text alert system to get updates about their local supplies.’
THE LATE LATE TOY SHOW
While most of the country will be staying inside regardless, it’s hilariously coincidental that the theme of this year’s Toy Show is Home Alone.
The biggest TV event in the country is still going ahead on Friday night — with host Patrick Kielty saying that the show will continue ‘come hell or high water.’
A firm believer in the mantra ‘the show must go on,’ Patrick told reporters ‘It’ll take a fair bit of weather to stop the Toy Show. I mean, nothing stops the Toy Show. I don’t think so. Come hell, high water, or whatever weather warning, at 9.30pm we’re going to be going.’
Last year’s Late Late Toy show was RTÉ’s most-watched programme of 2023, with over 1.7 million viewers. It was also viewed on the RTÉ Player more than 550,000 times in 147 countries.