Longford weather alert: 'Heavy and disruptive' snow a possibility on Thursday

We're certainly feeling the cold this week as temperatures plummet and weather warnings are issued for ice and snow. And, according to Midland Weather Channel's weather guru Cathal Nolan, we're in for a week of "very mixed conditions" ranging from glorious winter sunshine to severe night frosts, gale force winds and, for some, even heavy and potentially disruptive snow.

And it seems Met Éireann is in agreement. The national weather forecaster issued a status yellow snow and ice weather warning for the whole country this morning, which will be in place from tomorrow (Tuesday) at 6am until Saturday at 6pm.

Met Éirann has also issued the following forecast: "Very cold this week with scattered wintry showers, frequent across the southwest, west and north. Some accumulations of snow are expected. There will be widespread frost at night with icy stretches on untreated surfaces."

Read also: Weather forecast for the coming days from Met Eireann

The national forecaster is due to update the weather warning at 10am tomorrow morning.

The highest risk of seeing some heavy and disruptive snow, according to Mr Nolan, comes on Thursday as a deepening Atlantic low-pressure system slides southeastwards along the west coast, pushing up against some very cold air that will be in place across the country, turning any precipitation that falls along the northern side of this system to heavy snow.

"But first we must contend with the risk of some more moderate falls of snow across parts of the north, west and north Midlands through Tuesday and into Wednesday. Heavy squally showers of hail, sleet and snow will push southeastwards across the country, delivering up to 10 cm of snow in some inland areas of the north and northwest, with a covering of snow possible further south and across the Midlands," Mr Nolan said on his Facebook page, Midland Weather Channel, this afternoon.

"However it's to Thursday that most of our focus should be directed and the potential for some really substantial wintry conditions, with snowfall totals widely ranging between 10-15 cm, with some areas even seeing above 20 cm, especially over higher ground. But there are lots of uncertainties surrounding this at present, and to highlight some of uncertainties I've provided three potential scenarios for Thursday's weather," he added.

Scenario one is the most likely, according to Mr Nolan, with the low-pressure system pushing close to the southwest coast, delivering a band of heavy rain, sleet and snow across the country, with snowfall likely across much of the Midlands, Connacht and North Leinster.

In this scenario, Longford is likely to see between 10 and 15 cm of snow, with slightly heavier snowfall conditions possible in the north west of the county.

Also read: Longford Weather Alert: Possible return of the 'Beast from the East'?

Scenario two will see the low-pressure remaining further south, with south Longford potentially seeing 10 to 15 cm of snowfall on Thursday, while 5 to 10 cm would be likely in north Longford.

Scenario three pushes the low-pressure system further north than is currently expected, with much of Munster, South Connacht and South Lensiter avoiding any snowfall. North Longford, in this situation would see the most amount of snow, with 10 to 15 cm likely, and 5 to 10 cm likely in south Longford.

"Again it's worth emphasizing that this particular event is still some time away meteorologically speaking, and small changes can make a massive difference in terms of the overall weather conditions that we are likely to experience on Thursday itself. However the risk certainly does exist of a considerable fall of snow developing across large areas of the country on Thursday," Mr Nolan concluded.

Met Éireann Forecast for the week: Unsettled and very cold with frost, rain sleet and snow

Tuesday night will be very cold, wintry showers of hail, sleet and snow will continue they will be most frequent over parts of Munster, Connacht and Ulster. There will be a widespread sharp or severe frost and icy patches. Lowest temperatures of -3 to +1 degrees. 

Wednesday will continue cold with some wintry showers at first, however a good deal of dry weather is expected in the afternoon with sunny spells. Highest temperatures of 3 to 7 degrees with mostly moderate west to northwest breezes. On Wednesday night, severe frost and icy patches will develop. 

Thursday remains very uncertain but current indications suggest it will start cloudy in most areas with a band of rain spreading from the southwest. The rain possibly turning to snow as it pushes northeastwards but there is a lot of uncertainty in relation to this feature at the moment. It will be very cold with temperatures of just 3 to 6 degrees. Frost and ice will develop on Thursday night along with further wintry showers. 

Friday will continue cold. There will be a good deal of dry weather in central areas but a few showers will occur along east and Atlantic coasts, a few possibly wintry in parts of the west and northwest. Highest temperatures of 3 to 6 degrees with moderate to fresh northerly breezes.

Next weekend: Cold with sunny spells and a few scattered showers on Saturday, some wintry in the north and west. Frost and ice overnight with lows of 0 to -2 Celsius. Current indications suggest a band of rain will approach from the west Sunday afternoon and spread across the country overnight. Lows of 2 to 6 Celsius.