Batten down the hatches – Ireland is on status red alert.
Met Éireann have tonight (Wednesday) put all counties on a status red weather warning. Kilkenny and Carlow were previously included, along with the rest of Leinster.
READ: The latest KCLR Alerts
The original duration of the status red weather warning was 4pm Thursday to 12pm Friday, with shops and services indicating they would open from lunchtime on Friday.
With weather models revised, the entire country has now been elevated to red with the warning effective immediately and valid through to the extended time of 3pm.
Already warnings were in place for people not to travel beyond 4pm on Thursday afternoon as heavy snowfalls are expected.
In his forecast on Wednesday evening, CarlowWeather.com‘s Alan O’Reilly hinted at zero visibility across the region heading into early evening tomorrow with gusts reaching up to 100km/h. With the possibility of a cold front moving in closer to the weekend, snowfall may be sticking around for a few days yet.
We’ll have the latest update from Alan and a look at new weather models for the area on KCLR Live after 10am Thursday.
Status Red: Met Éireann Latest Update
Further heavy snow showers will bring accumulations of significant levels with all areas at risk.
Blizzard conditions will develop from the south Thursday afternoon and evening as heavy snow and strong easterly winds bring snow drifts northwards over the country. Eastern and southern coastal counties will be worst affected.