Braced for some Jocelyn around
Warnings after three road deaths
THE country was last night bracing for the 10th storm in only four months with road safety groups highlighting fears after three deaths already.
Severe and damaging gusts were forecast by Met Eireann’s wind warnings, leaving fresh clean-up operations for councils, just days after Storm Isha.
The 2017 Storm Ophelia, which was Ireland’s worst in 50 years, caused €70million worth of damages, according to estimates.
Workers in Status Orange areas were urged to go home early before Storm Jocelyn made landfall from the Atlantic.
The Road Safety Authority advised road users to “exercise caution” amid the Yellow and Orange warnings for Storm Jocelyn, which was expected to damage power lines.
An Orange wind warning for Donegal expired at 2am and at midnight for Galway and Mayo – where thousands of homes and businesses remained without electricity due to Storm Isha on Sunday.
The warnings also affected Cavan, Clare, Cork, Kerry, Leinster, Leitrim, Limerick, Monaghan, Roscommon, Sligo, Tipperary, and Waterford, plus all six counties in Northern Ireland.
Met Eireann warned of “very difficult travelling conditions, fallen trees and damage to power lines and damage to already weakened structures”.
Three people were killed in road accidents during Storm Isha, including a woman when a van crashed into a tree in Louth, a man in Derry when a tree fell on his car, and in Mayo when a man’s vehicle crashed.
Meteorologist Aoife Kealy said yesterday: “Even in areas that aren’t under an Orange warning, it is important to note that it is going to be very windy.
“There might be trees and so on that have been weakened by the storm over the weekend.
“And whereas the storm of this magnitude might not necessarily always be this impactful, the fact that it’s following so quickly on the heels of storm Isha is making it even more difficult.”
She added: “It is very important to take care on roads and be careful of any fallen trees or debris.” Mayo County Council road safety officer Gary Smyth urged workers to be safe at home.
He told RTE radio: “If they can leave there early, if they are on flexitime or whatever else, to get home before the storm hits.
“We still have a lot of electric blackouts here in Mayo, so there may not be streetlights, there may not be places lit up.
“So, it may not be as visible as it normally would be.”
Road users in affected areas were also advised to check local traffic and weather conditions before setting out on a journey.
Drivers were urged to slow down and allow a greater braking distance between themselves and the vehicle in front in wet weather. An RSA spokesperson said: “This is especially important on highspeed roads such as dual carriageways and motorways where there is increased danger of aquaplaning.
“Take special care when driving behind goods vehicles, as they generate a considerable amount of spray, which reduces your visibility.
“Hold back to where you can see their mirrors.
“Beware of objects being blown out on to the road. Expect the unexpected.
“Watch out for falling/fallen debris on the road and vehicles veering across the road. Control of a vehicle may be affected by strong cross winds.
“Take extra care when crossing the road or cycling in extremely windy conditions, as a sudden gust of wind could blow you into the path of an oncoming vehicle.”
Some 45,000 properties remained
Take extra care when driving behind goods vehicles
RSA SPOKESMAN YESTERDAY
without power yesterday and ESB Networks warned that Storm Jocelyn will hamper restoration works.
Before Jocelyn made landfall yesterday, Irish Water crews were also working to restore water supply to any properties which were hit with outages caused at local treatment plants by Storm Isha.
Councils across the country were on alert due to Storm Jocelyn to warn of spot flooding and to remove more fallen trees, many of which have been weakened already by Storm Isha. Meanwhile, Gas Networks Ireland has revealed the increasing contribution that wind power makes to electricity generation in Ireland.
Wind’s overall contribution to electricity generation increased from 34% in 2022 to 39% in 2023.
Gas was the largest energy source of electricity generation in Ireland for the first 10 months of 2023, but wind energy was the key source in December.
Both wind and gas made an equal contribution of 41% in November. Gas generated 47% of the total electricity used in Ireland in 2023, with wind energy contributing 39%.
Wind energy made its largest contribution in December, generating 53% of all electricity in the State. Gas peaked at 89% of electricity generation during April, but never fell lower than December’s 9.5%, while wind peaked at 80% in December.