Bracing for hurricane in Ireland

THE remnants of Hurricane Ophelia could bring wind gusts of 130km/h disruption and damage to Ireland and Britain as the work week gets under way, weather services said.

Ophelia weakened to a Category 1 hurricane as it moved north-northeast across the Atlantic, with sustained winds of 145km/h. It is expected to be downgraded to a post-tropical storm before making landfall in southern Ireland but UK Met Office forecaster Luke Miall said it could still pack “hurricane force” winds.

Ireland’s Met Eireann weather service said the country’s southern and western counties could get gusts of up to 130km/h along with heavy rain and storm surges. The US National Hurricane Centre said the storm could cause “large and destructive waves”.