Vivienne Clarke
Met Éireann spokesperson Gerry Murphy has warned of snow and sleet showers across much of the country on Thursday.
Ireland is "in the grip" of a cold snap which will last until the end of the week, he told national radio this morning.
A band of rain which has begun moving northwards across the country has begun falling as sleet and snow as temperatures drop, he explained. The north midlands, Connacht and Ulster will experience the worst of this weather which will extend across the remainder of the country this evening with "disruptive" snow falls on the east coast tonight.
As the band crosses the country there will be improved conditions in the south-west, he added.
A status yellow snow and ice warning is currently in place for the whole country.
The status yellow warning comes into force at 3am on Thursday morning and will last until 11pm on Thursday night.
A second snow and ice warning will run until 7am on Friday for Leinster, Cavan and Monaghan.
Many parts of the country saw snowfall overnight.
Met Éireann has warned of significant accumulations of snow in Leinster along with counties Cavan and Monaghan.
The UK Met Office has also issued a snow warning for the six counties, valid from Thursday morning until Friday at 2pm.
Rain, sleet & #snow will continue to spread NE to most areas this morning with poor visibility & hazardous road conditions in some parts.⚠️? ??♂️
Afternoon highs of 1 to 5°C, but significantly milder in southern coastal areas. Northeasterly winds will freshen this afternoon. ? pic.twitter.com/GRupytm6St
— Met Éireann (@MetEireann) March 9, 2023
Accumulations of snow are expected in many areas along with icy conditions. The national forecaster warned the weather will bring hazardous driving conditions, travel disruption and poor visibility.
An Garda Síochána have advised motorists to continue to exercise caution while driving in the current weather conditions "as visibility and road conditions may be poor in some areas".
A status yellow low temperature warning will be in place from 9pm on Thursday night to 10am on Friday morning.
Status Yellow - Snow-Ice warning for Leinster, Cavan, Monaghan
Possible Impacts:
● Hazardous driving conditions
● Travel disruption
● Poor VisibilityValid: 23:00 Thursday 09/03/2023 to 07:00 Friday 10/03/2023⤵️https://t.co/l8JdKfwZt9 pic.twitter.com/OhRDaXJhLw
— Met Éireann (@MetEireann) March 8, 2023
On Wednesday, Meteorologist Mr Murphy told RTÉ News at One that temperatures on Tuesday night dropped to -8.5 degrees Celsius in Castlederg, Co Tyrone, the lowest temperature recorded there since 2010.
