Freezing temperatures falling to -8 with more snow forecast

More snow is forecast to sweep in over the weekend and early next week as temperatures plummet across the country.

All areas will feel the chill from Saturday night onwards , with Met Éireann predicting that temperatures on the mercury could fall as low as minus eight in some places on Monday night, ahead of a wet front which will cross the country from early Tuesday.

Gale force conditions are also set to make a brief return to western coastal regions on Saturday following earlier gusts of up to 120km/h which left thousands of homes in the north and west without power.

Although a thaw has now set in across much of the country, it will start to feel colder over the weekend leading to persistent freezing night time conditions early next week.

“We’re not finished with winter yet, and it stays cold next week, but temperatures will rise by about half a degree from Tuesday onwards, but even by next Friday it’s still in the four to six range,” said forecaster John Eagleton.

“It’s basically a cold, showery weekend, with some showers wintery, particularly at night. I don’t think they’ll be (snowy) during the day, and maybe not even tomorrow because the temperatures will be up around four or five degrees.

“There will be snow, with those kind of temperatures and the showery setup of the weather. With temperatures going down to minus two or three at night there’s bound to be snow,” he added.

Accumulations of snow in northern and western areas in particular have caused disruption over recent days.

Almost 1,500 homes were left without power on Thursday overnight following high winds, snow showers and lightning in places.