Storm Boelo follows Austen as 3,000 Irish premises lose power

Around 3,000 homes, farms and businesses across Ireland were without power at 7:00am on Friday, October 23, as Storm Austen tracked eastwards across the country. ESB Networks has confirmed the outage figure and has deployed crews to every affected area, where restoration work can proceed safely.

The damage comes barely a day before a second system, Storm Boelo, arrives to disrupt the October Bank Holiday weekend. Met Éireann has warned of a very unsettled spell ahead and has urged road users to expect localised flooding, fallen trees and debris on routes this morning.

What warnings remain in place?

A Status Orange rainfall warning covering Dublin, Wexford and Wicklow ran until 8:00am today. A similar warning for Cork, Kerry and Waterford expired earlier, at 5:00am. A Status Yellow warning for rain and wind across Leinster and Munster stayed valid until 10:00am.

ESB Networks has cautioned that further outages are possible while the warnings remain active. Farmers relying on electric fencing, milking equipment or grain drying should treat the current supply as fragile until the weekend system clears.

How will Friday and Saturday develop?

Rain in the east and north will clear eastwards this morning, replaced by sunshine and scattered showers for the rest of the day. Fresh, occasionally strong and gusty northwesterly winds will gradually ease and veer westerly later. Afternoon temperatures will peak at 8°C to 12°C.

Tonight stays mainly dry apart from isolated showers on the Atlantic coast, with overnight lows of 2°C to 8°C in light to moderate southwesterly winds. Cloud will build in the west, however, and rain will become widespread by morning, with some heavy falls possible.

Saturday brings the sharper test. Widespread rain and fresh to strong, gusty southerly winds will reach near gale or gale force near coasts. The rain will turn heavy at times, particularly in the west and south-west, and Met Éireann has flagged a flood risk for those regions.

During the afternoon the rain clears to showers, with isolated thunderstorms possible in the north-west. Southwest to westerly winds will strengthen further, reaching gale or strong gale force near west and north-west coasts as Storm Boelo tracks to the north of the country. Top temperatures on Saturday will reach 12°C to 15°C.

Saturday night keeps strong, gusty westerly winds, strongest in the north and west, with frequent showers in those regions. Overnight lows of 4°C to 8°C will feel coolest in the north.

When do conditions ease?

Sunday morning brings sunny spells and scattered showers, with longer spells of rain possible in the north-west. Showers become more isolated later in the day and winds ease, with highs of 9°C to 12°C. Sunday night starts mainly dry before cloud builds from the south-west, bringing rain towards morning on gusty southeasterly winds in the south-west. Lows of 3°C to 8°C are expected.

Rain will move northeastwards on Monday morning, accompanied by moderate to fresh southeasterly winds. It will feel mild and humid, with top temperatures of 14°C to 17°C.

What does this mean for field work?

Met Éireann's outlook carries the sharpest message for farmers. Rainfall over the coming week will run well above average nationwide, at up to two or three times the norm for late October.

Mean air temperatures will sit close to or below average, ranging from 9°C to 13°C. Mean soil temperatures will fall slightly but should remain above average.

The practical consequences are clear:

• Drying conditions will generally be poor, with the best chances on Sunday and Wednesday.
• Spraying opportunities will be limited by the unsettled weather throughout the week.
• Moderately drained soils will become waterlogged over the weekend.
• A slight improvement in moderately drained soils is expected towards the end of the coming week.

Growers with late spraying or harvesting planned should target Sunday as the first realistic window, and watch whether Wednesday holds before committing machinery to wet ground. The next firm guide will come from Met Éireann's updates as Storm Boelo tracks north of the country over the weekend.