Hurricane Lorenzo WILL hit Ireland – and it could be worse than devastating Storm Ophelia.
Lorenzo was declared a category five on Saturday, making it the strongest ever recorded this far across the Atlantic.
Charts show the eye of the storm – downgraded from a hurricane by the time it reaches us – hitting the west and south coasts of Cork and Kerry on Thursday morning.
Tonight Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy attended a meeting of the National Emergency Co-
ordination Group.
Speaking afterwards, he said: “Our primary concern is around coastal areas and the very significant storm and wave surges we are going to see.
“It could be quite ferocious, very dangerous. There is a secondary concern around very strong winds.”
Met Eireann is expected to make an announcement in relation to the storm on Wednesday morning, with the possibility of issuing an orange or red warning if needed.
In the UK, the Met Office has already put out more than 200 flood warnings for the south of the country.
Lorenzo’s wind speeds are currently averaging around 170kmh. It’s believed this will decrease to approximately 100kmh when it hits Ireland with gusts of up to 115kmh.
After it passes, it will track northwest back over the Atlantic.
The last storm of this calibre was Ophelia, which shut down the country for two days in October 2017. It saw trees ripped up and roofs blown off and, tragically, three people lost their lives.
The western coast experienced extensive damage with defences “completely breached” along Salthill promenade in Galway and hundreds of trees felled in the city. Water surges in the Shannon Estuary also led to flooding in Limerick City.
The highest 10-minute sustained wind speed recorded during Ophelia was at Roches Point in Co Cork where winds reached violent storm force with gusts of 156kmh.
However, there were hurricane force gales off the south coast just before Ophelia made landfall, with a blast of 191kmh recorded at Fastnet Rock.
More than 300,000 premises were left without electricity during the course of the storm.
Met Eireann said conditions should improve swiftly from Thursday as Lorenzo recedes.
The forecaster added: “It will become mainly dry, with maximum temperatures in the mid to high teens.”
