Blow west! Storm Ali lands and hits hard...

DRIVERS are being warned to stay vigilant as Storm Ali batters Ireland with dangerous gale-force winds expected today.

Winds of up to 80kph with gusts between 110-120kph have prompted Met Éireann to issue orange weather warnings, its second highest, across 13 counties.

The counties worst affected are: Cavan, Monaghan, Donegal, Dublin, Kildare, Louth, Meath, Galway, Leitrim, Mayo, Sligo, Clare and Kerry.

But the threat is so severe that all other counties have been issued with a yellow warning.

Met Éireann said on its website: ‘The core rationale for issuing weather warnings is to protect the lives and livelihoods of all the nation’s citizens, and to mitigate damage to property and disturbance to economic activity at times of severe weather.’

The Road Safety Authority has advised motorists to ‘expect the unexpected’ as cross winds can affect how much control drivers have over their cars, with highsided vehicles and motorcyclists particularly vulnerable to strong winds.

Drivers have been urged to use dipped headlights at all times and to leave extra space between cars and cyclists, in case a gust of wind blows bicycles off-course.

Pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists have been advised to wear bright, reflective clothing and take care when crossing roads as a sudden gust of wind could blow people into the path of an oncoming vehicle.

Objects and dangerous flying debris, including from felled trees, are also likely to be blown out onto roads, leading to injuries and potentially deaths. The north and west Atlantic coasts will be affected first, with winds moving quickly eastwards during the morning.

Northern Ireland and Scotland are also expecting widespread disruption as the storm sweeps across the UK.

The Met Office in Britain warned that longer journey times and cancellations are likely as travel services are affected. The storm here should ease off by Friday, however, with sunshine expected over the weekend.

Storm Ali is the first named storm of the season as Met Éireann and the UK Met Office continue the Name Our Storms scheme to raise awareness of extreme weather before it arrives.

The list of names was created from a list of suggestions by the public.