Met Eireann on standby to issue possible Orange or Red warnings before storm Lorenzo's arrival
Met Eireann has said it is on standby to issue a Status Orange weather warning for certain areas as Hurricane Lorenzo approaches Ireland and a possible Red for parts.
The National Emergency Co-Ordination group has yet to be convened for a meeting, but the ESB, Gardaí, public transport operators and local authorities have been told to be ready to activate their crisis management plans.
Evelyn Cusack, Head of Forecasting at Met Eireann, said they are waiting to see how the storm develops before issuing a weather warning.
Ms Cusack said: "So while it will give some very wet and very windy weather, perhaps Orange Weather warnings will be the worst, perhaps touching a Status Red on the west and north-west coast, but we won't be issuing those warnings until Wednesday morning.
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The forecaster has been working with the US National Hurricane Center and others to try and predict the storm's route.
Met Eireann's Jean Byrne said: "The closer we get to the event, obviously, the better idea we should have. Luckily the models are coming in a little bit more into line, so I think we are fairly confident at this stage it will track close to Ireland, at least, if not over it.
"I suppose tomorrow they (the models) should align even further, we should know whether it will track slightly to the south-west or down across Connacht and across the country on Thursday night."
The National Emergency Co-ordination Group (NECG) will meet later today to plan for the arrival of Hurricane Lorenzo, which is making its way across the Atlantic.
Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government Eoghan Murphy is convening the meeting at 4pm today, after which there will be further updates.
Mr Murphy said the OPW has confirmed that high seas and potential storm surges may occur along the coast as this system approaches Ireland.
The national picture is for winds to pick up on Wednesday evening, with rainfall and wind continuing throughout Thursday and into Friday morning.
Mr Murphy said they have contacted all local authorities, requesting that they monitor Met Éireann's forecasts, and prepare for storm impacts by activating Crisis Management and Local Co-ordination arrangements.
He also said they have contacted DTTS (Transport Operators and IRCG), An Garda Síochána (public safety messaging), ESBN, the OPW and Irish Water.
Kenneth from the Donegal Weather Channel
Kenneth from the Donegal Weather Channel.
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