High temperatures and dry conditions are thought to have been behind a short delay to departing flights at Dublin Airport on Friday afternoon, when smouldering runway grass caused a brief logjam of planes.
A spokesman for airport operator DAA said the issue was probably due to an ongoing lack of rain but that it was quickly brought under control with no threat to aircraft.
Describing it as a “miniscule disruption”, he said planes could not taxi over or near signs of smoke for obvious safety reasons but that it would be assessed by fire personnel.
The weekend is set to be warm and humid with temperatures of 21 to 24 degrees, though there may be some scattered showers, Met Éireann has forecast.
This 20-minute grilled chicken dish will see you through the summer
Playing with fire: King of barbecue Andy Noonan of the Big Grill Festival shares his best tips and recipes
Four barbecue experts cooking up a storm at The Big Grill, and their top recipes
Spiced lamb stuffed flatbreads for a Middle Eastern inspired dinner you can make in minutes
Friday will remain dry across many areas with spells of sunshine.
It will be cloudier, however, in the south and southwest with some showers which will gradually extend across parts of Connacht.
Warm weather will become quite humid throughout Friday with highest temperatures of 21 to 24 degrees generally.
Friday will not be as warm across eastern counties, with highest temperatures of 18 to 21 degrees, all in moderate to fresh easterly winds, Met Éireann said.
Friday night is forecasted to be “very mild and humid” and largely dry for much of the night under broken cloud with just isolated showers.
“Heavier and more persistent showers will move up from the south later in the night,” Met Éireann said.
Temperatures will not fall below 11 to 15 degrees in light easterly breezes.
Saturday will be warm and humid with a mix of cloud and sunshine.
Scattered showers, mainly over Munster at first, will gradually extend into other parts of the country, some turning heavy with the chance of isolated thunderstorms and spot flooding.
The highest temperatures are forecasted to be 19 to 24 or 25 degrees, coolest in the south, in a light to moderate east to southeast breeze.
The weather will become more humid and very mild with scattered showers tracking northwards on Saturday. Some heavy thunder is possible as well as flooding, according to Met Éireann.
Some mist or fog is forecast to set in later too. The lowest temperatures forecast are 14 to 16 degrees Celsius with just light southerly breezes. A mix of cloud and summer sunshine with well scattered showers too will arrive on Sunday, with “a potential for local thundery ones”.
As the weekend ends, the weather will become warmer though scattered slow moving showers will bring the potential for flooding again on Monday and Tuesday.
Parts of the country will stay fully dry though, with temperatures of 20 to 26 degrees Celsius, Met Éireann said.
