Temperatures will be as low as minus four degrees this weekend, as Met Éireann warns of possible sleet or snow.
A status yellow low temperature warning is in place until midday on Saturday, with the national forecaster stating it will be “very cold with widespread frost and icy conditions”. Fog and freezing fog are also expected.
As a consequence, travel conditions will be hazardous, with potential disruptions.
On Friday morning, any frost, ice and mist or fog will gradually clear. It will be a very cold and bright day with sunshine and scattered showers, mainly in the north and west, with the odd shower on eastern coasts.
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Some showers will fall as hail or sleet and highest temperatures will be between two and six degrees.
It will be mostly dry on Friday night with isolated showers, and the possibility of sleet or snow, mainly across the northwest of the country. A very cold night is anticipated, the forecaster said, with lowest temperatures of zero to minus four degrees with a widespread sharp frost and icy patches.
Saturday will be another cold day with frost and ice to begin with. Most areas will be dry through the day, with any wintry showers mainly along north and west coasts. The rest of the weekend will be “very cold with frost, ice and some wintry precipitation” before temperatures begin to rise next week.
Saturday night will have scattered outbreaks of rain and drizzle moving in off the Atlantic, possibly turning wintry over higher ground. Lowest temperatures are expected to be between minus three and two degrees, with light breezes.
Meanwhile, current indications suggest that wet and windy weather will spread over the south and east of the country early on Monday, with the possibility of scattered falls of sleet.
A spokeswoman for the Dublin Region Homeless Executive (DRHE) said during the period of extreme weather, the executive has a protocol in place, which sets out the coordinated response activated during extreme weather conditions or adverse events.
“Bed capacity has been increased by 330 permanent beds in recent months and 40 extreme weather beds are also available to be used on an as-needed basis,” she said.
“We encourage anyone requiring emergency accommodation to contact their local authority or the freephone service early in the day.”
The spokeswoman added that the Dublin region outreach service is working directly with rough sleepers from 7am to 1am daily and assists any individuals they meet to take up emergency accommodation.
“We would also continue to ask the public for their assistance during this time to let us know if they come across someone sleeping rough on our website, call 01 872 0185 or via our free app Dublin City Rough Sleeper Alerts.”
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