Storm Saoirse is on the way... sometime

WHEN storms struck, they used to leave us cold, miserable and struggling to pronounce their names – but that all changed in recent years thanks to an innovative Anglo-Irish agreement.

And so Met Éireann and the UK’s Met Office yesterday announced 21 storm names for the coming year, all picked from public suggestions and intended to reflect the culture and diversity of both countries.

Storm Ali is first, followed by Bronagh, Callum and Deirdre. The list alternates between male and female, going alphabetically to Saoirse, Tristan, Violet and Wyn. The letters Q, U, X, Y and Z are out in compliance with international storm naming conventions.

Evelyn Cusack, Met Éireann’s head of forecasting, said: ‘While it is too early to say whether the coming winter will be a stormy one or a quiet one, we are prepared with a new set of 21 names for whatever nature throws up.’

The ‘Name our Storms’ scheme was launched in 2015 to raise awareness of severe weather before it hits, with Abigail the first named weather system. A storm is named when an orange or red warning is issued, normally when wind speeds exceed 65kph.

Last year Aileen, Ophelia and Brian battered Ireland before the end of October, while Hector hit most recently in mid-June.

Derrick Ryall, of the Met Office, said: ‘Naming storms has been proved to raise awareness of severe weather.’