MOTORISTS HAVE been advised to take great care on the roads this morning as it is forecast that the recent cold snap will continue into the middle of the week.
Met Éireann said it expected the next 36 hours or so to be very cold, as strong westerly winds and bands of intense showers move across the country, which could also result in heavy frosts and showers of hail and sleet.
“Most areas can expect falls of sleet or snow at times, leading to some accumulations. The nights will be frosty in most places also, with some icy roads,” Met Éireann said in its latest weather warning.
The forecaster said it expected today’s temperature to reach a maximum of 3-6 degrees.
It predicted that there may be a brief reprieve from the wintry weather tomorrow, when temperatures could rise to between 9-12 degrees.
However, the break is likely to be short-lived with Thursday expected to be a cold, blustery day with some sunny spells, but with passing heavy wintry showers leading to frost and icy patches.
A series of snow showers swept across Ireland yesterday morning making conditions hazardous for motorists.
Sleet, snow and black ice were reported in counties Kerry, Cork, Westmeath, Limerick, Tipperary, Roscommon and Sligo over the course of the day.
Co Kerry woke to freezing conditions yesterday and traffic in the east of the county, as well as in the Killarney and Tralee areas, was slowed to a crawl.
A number of schools in the east of the county were forced to remain closed.
Trucks and lorries were not able to travel in the Castleisland and Scartaglin areas and were forced to pull in off the roads early in the day.
AA Roadwatch said the northwest was very badly affected later in the day, with snow and ice generating dangerous motoring conditions in all corners of Co Donegal.
Letterkenny was heavily hit by the elements, with some motorists reporting that it took over an hour and a half to travel less than half a mile in the town centre.
With over four inches of snow falling in some areas during the afternoon, Donegal County Council employees were struggling to get the main roads clear and a number of events were cancelled in the town.
The main N56 road from Kilmacrennan to Creeslough was blocked for some time yesterday and traffic on the main Derry to Letterkenny road was moving at less than 30km/h last night.
The town of Ramelton was described by gardaí as being impassable just after 5pm.
Numerous weather-related incidents were reported across the county yesterday and a number of trucks became stuck on hilly roads in north Donegal.
A Garda spokesman urged motorists in Donegal not to travel unless it was absolutely necessary.
Met Éireann said there had been a lot of serious weather events over the weekend.
A spokeswoman said very severe gusts of wind of up to 174km/h had been recorded at Belmullet weather station in Co Mayo.