3,000 ESB customers without power following strong winds

About 4,000 ESB customers across the country are without power following heavy overnight winds and thunderstorms.

The worst affected areas are in the south and southwest, with Co Limerick and Co Clare seeing the highest concentration of power outages.

In Dublin, 95 people are currently without power in Raheny on the north side, according to ESB's powercheck service, which contains real-time information on faults and repairs.

The electricity company had difficulty repairing faults overnight due to lightning.

Met Éireannhas lifted its earlier weather warnings. Sunny spells are expected thorughout the day, with a mix of scattered thundery showers.

The south west is still the worst affected area, with winds of 65 to 80km/h and gusts of over 110 km/h for counties Donegal, Galway, Leitrim, Mayo, Sligo, Clare, Cork, Kerry and Limerick.

In exposed coastal and hilly areas the gusts may reach 130 km/h.

Road users are being advised to be extra cautious due to the conditions.

A snow and ice warning is in place for Donegal where wintry showers of hail, sleet and snow are forecast.

The forecaster has also warned of the potential for coastal flooding due to high seas and some high tides, especially along the Atlantic coast.

According to Met Éireann snow of up to 3cms are likely, with deeper snow possible on higher ground.

AA Roadwatch advised that motorists take extra care driving in high winds, especially on secondary roads where debris is likely.