Weather warnings have been issued across the whole of the West of Ireland ahead of Storm Bella lashing Ireland on St Stephen's Day. It's unlikely to result in a White Christmas anywhere in Ireland - though there might be smatterings of snow and sleet - but will certainly bring plenty of rain and very high winds.
"Through Saturday afternoon, evening and night, westerly winds associated with Storm Bella (named by UK Met Office) will reach mean speeds of 50 to 65km/h with gusts of 90 to 110km/h," read a statement on Met Eireann's website. "With the combination of strong winds, high waves and forecasted storm surge, there is a risk of coastal flooding."
Christmas Day itself should be relatively sanguine with the worst of the weather due to land over the weekend. There is a wind warning in place for Connacht, Donegal, Clare, Cork, Kerry and Limerick, with nothing currently listed for the rest of Ireland. The warning lasts from midday on St Stephen's Day until 6am on Sunday the 27th December.
We've had it quite easy with storms so far this winter. There was Storm Alex at the beginning of the season, at the end of September, but it barely touched Ireland. It was followed a few weeks later by Storm Aiden, which caused wind warnings across the West and knocked out power for 8,000 people.
Many will remember the last great Christmas storm, the infamous Hurricane Stephen that landed in Ireland on St Stephen's Day 1998. It wiped out all of Christmas, landing on Christmas Eve and peaking on the 26th of December. Millions were left without power across Ireland and the UK as winds reached speeds of well over 140 km/h. It took until the New Year to restore electricity in some parts of the country.
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There are no indications that Storm Bella will reach that ferocity or cause anywhere near the sort of damage seen in 1998, but we still need to be careful. Sure we'll all be in the house anyway, right?
Topics: Ireland