Irish heatwave: temperatures to hit 28 degrees today

Temperatures on Tuesday are expected to reach 28 degrees, as a 10-day heatwave continues.

The day will start with hazy sunshine and showers in some coastal areas in the west.

These showers will clear during the morning and the afternoon will be dry with good sunshine, according to Met Éireann.

Temperatures will be between 24 and 28 degrees, and there will be some light winds near the south and east coasts, bringing a breeze.

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The high temperatures have prompted Met Éireann to issue a weather warning as temperatures are expected to steadily increase during the week and reach 30 degrees.

Night-time temperatures are also expected to increase over the week and Tuesday will see temperatures only drop to between 12 and 16 degrees.

The highest temperature recorded on Monday was 27.5 degrees, at Oak Park weather station in Co Carlow, followed by 26.7 degrees at Shannon Airport, and just under 25 degrees in the Phoenix Park.

On Wednesday, maximum temperatures will be upwards of 25 degrees, to 29 or even 30 degrees in some cases.

Forecast

Thursday is forecast to be the hottest day of the year, to date. Overall there is no sign of the period of dry, hot weather ending yet, forecasters have said.

Met Éireann forecaster John Eagleton said all the indicators were for the bright sunny conditions to continue until next Wednesday week at the earliest.

Mr Eagleton said the hot weather might set off a few thunderstorms on Sunday, but the early days of next week are looking very good for the start of July with 24 degrees in many places.

“Once you get the good weather, it is hard to shift it,” he said. “This is a heatwave, Irish style. In many countries a heatwave is something to be feared. In Greece, people die. In Ireland, it is something to be enjoyed.”

He cautioned, however, there was a long way to go before the summer can be compared with that of 1995, when Ireland basked in six weeks of unbroken sunshine.

Despite the scorching temperatures a new record high is unlikely to be set this week. The highest temperature recorded in Ireland was 33.3 degrees, at Kilkenny Castle, on June 26th, 1887.

The only cloud on the horizon is the absence of any clouds on the horizon. Irish Water has warned that water levels in rivers and lakes are dropping significantly and drought conditions could be similar to those experienced in 1976.

There is concern the prolonged period of warm weather may lead to water shortages, and water reservoir levels are already under strain in the greater Dublin area.

The public are being encouraged to take steps to reduce water usage. These include not using a hose to water the garden or cars and taking showers rather than baths.

Forest fires

The Department of Agriculture has issued a status orange warning for forest fires, due to the dry conditions and high temperatures.

Coillte, the State-owned commercial forestry, has said forest fires will be "very likely" over the course of the week.

Coillte staff and the Dublin Fire Brigade have been battling a forest fire at Barnaslingan Wood, south Co Dublin, for the past ten days. A spokesman said emergency teams were "working around the clock to keep the fire contained, but rain is needed to dampen the fire and cool off the embers in the ground".

A spokesman for the Dublin Fire Brigade said as of Tuesday morning units had not been called out to any additional forest or gorse fires.