Hot weather set to return with possible highs of 28 degrees next week

A return to hot weather is forecast next week with blue skies and possible highs of 28 degrees.

A high-pressure area is starting to build over the country with each day getting progressively warmer.

There will also be little in the way of rain either expect on the Atlantic coastal fringes. Saturday and Sunday will be warm and humid with highs on Sunday of 22 degrees.

High pressure from northern continental Europe will start to cross the country and will mark a return to summer weather starting from Monday.

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“The days will get warmer by about a degree each day,” said Met Éireann forecaster Siobhan Ryan.

“It looks by and large dry and calm. Any fronts are well away from the northwest. The trend is upwards next week. It will be sunny with slack winds and very little rain,” she said.

The hottest days of next week will be on Thursday and Friday with highs of 27 degrees on Thursday and possibly 28 degrees on Friday. It will also be bright and sunny most places.

The weekend after next is also looking promising though not quite as hot and that pattern may continue into the following week. “It’s very hard to see the high pressure going anywhere,” she explained.

Rainfall will be well below normal and any rain that falls will mostly be in the west

A “do not bathe” warning remains in place on two of Dublin’s most popular beaches — Dollymount Strand and Sandymount Strand.

The bans were introduced on Tuesday following an overflow from the Ringsend Waster Water Treatment plant.

By contrast Keem Beach in Achill, Co Mayo has been deemed the cleanest place to swim in the UK and Ireland in a survey carried out by Ocean Bottle, a UK based company.

It based its research on data from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in Ireland and the UK’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. It measured the levels of E coli and intestinal Enterococci per 100ml in the samples taken from 800 bathing spots in the UK and Ireland.

Six of the top 20 best swimming spots were in Ireland. The others were Coral Strand and Dog’s Bay in Galway, Dooey Beach in Donegal, Curracloe Beach in Co Wexford and Enniscrone Beach in Co Sligo.