Orange weather warning issued with lightning and flooding expected

Met Éireann has issued a status orange thunder warning for 16 counties.

The forecaster has warned of potential torrential downpours and lightning strikes in Counties Cavan, Monaghan, Donegal, Dublin, Carlow, Kilkenny, Laois, Longford, Wexford, Wicklow, Westmeath, Leitrim, Roscommon, Sligo, Cork, Tipperary on Friday.

A status yellow rainfall warning is in place for Leinster and Counties Cavan, Monaghan, Donegal, Leitrim, Roscommon, Sligo, Cork, Limerick, Tipperary and Waterford. Met Éireann says scattered thunderstorms could lead to spot flooding in these areas. Between 25mm and 50 mm of rainfall is anticipated.

Both warnings are valid from 3pm to 10pm.

Sunshine gives way to warning of thunderstorms and floods

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A status orange warning is the second highest warning the forecaster can issue and means people should take action to prepare themselves for the conditions.

The change in conditions will not mark an end to the warm weather, with temperatures set to range between 18 and 23 degrees.

These showers will die out over Friday night with temperatures between 12 to 15 degrees.

Saturday will be warm and start out with hazy sunshine. There will be heavy and thundery showers in the north and west in the afternoon but the rest of the country will remain largely dry with just some isolated showers. Temperatures will range from 19 to 22 degrees, although it will be a couple of degrees cooler in the south and the southeast.

The showers in the north and west of the country will die out by Saturday evening with temperatures of 10 to 14 degrees nationwide.

Sunday is expected to be mostly dry with the warm, humid weather continuing and temperatures of 19 to 23 degrees. There may be some rainfall in the west and north on Sunday afternoon but the rest of the country will remain dry.

The good news is the warm weather is expected to continue early into next week with scattered and heavy showers in the afternoons and evenings.

By Wednesday, there is a chance the weather may get more unsettled bringing cooler temperatures. However, Met Éireann also says there is a “good chance” that the warm and humid weather will continue.