Strong gusts to sweep across Ireland as Storm Kathleen hits

Storm Kathleen is to bring strong winds and some damaging gusts as it sweeps across the island of Ireland on Saturday.

An orange wind warning kicks in for Cork, Kerry and Waterford from 7am until 2pm, while another status orange wind warning is in place for Galway and Mayo from 9am until 6pm.

A yellow wind warning is in place nationwide from the early hours of Saturday until 8pm.

Forecaster Met Eireann warned that there will be gale force southerly winds that will bring a risk of difficult travel conditions, fallen trees, some power outages and flooding along coastal areas.

Keith Leonard, national director of the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management (NDFEM), urged people to stay away from all coastal areas during the Met Eireann warnings.

“Importantly, I would remind people that it is critical that they never ever touch or approach fallen wires,” he said, urging people to contact ESB Networks instead.

In Northern Ireland, the Met Office issued a yellow wind warning for counties Antrim, Armagh, Down, Fermanagh, Tyrone and Derry, which will stay in place from 8am until 10pm.

It has warned of blustery showers in parts of the region, with strong to gale force southerly winds and possibly severe gales for a time along the Down and Antrim coasts.

Some exposed and coastal areas could see gusts reaching higher speeds of up to 70mph.