Lorenzo threatens ‘ferocious’ wave surges and 100kmh winds as it stalks west coast
IRELAND is bracing itself for Hurricane Lorenzo to sweep over the country as a tropical storm with winds of up to 100kmh and dangerous sea surges expected.
The storm, set to drop from a monster category-five hurricane to a tropical storm by tomorrow, is now expected to track past Ireland’s west coast or, in a worst case scenario, sweep directly over the country.
Met Éireann is due to make a fresh assessment this morning with detailed alerts to follow up to a possible Status Red.
It warns very wet conditions, very strong winds, high waves and flooding along coastlines and inland areas can be expected from tomorrow afternoon to Friday morning.
Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy ordered a meeting of the National Emergency Co-ordination Group to prepare for the worst that the first storm of the winter season may bring.
Gardaí, Defence Forces, the ESB, local authorities, fire brigades, the HSE and Coast Guard are all on standby while road and public transport crews are also preparing to deal with the threat of disruption to transport networks.
“All the crisis management teams are now being activiated, ready to go, depending on what warning Met Éireann gives,” he said.
Western and northern counties are expected to be worst affected as Lorenzo pushes waves characterised as “high” or “phenomenal” across the Atlantic.
By the time they reach our shores, Mr Murphy warned they would produce “very significant wave surges”.
“They could be quite ferocious, very dangerous,” he said.
Inland and across the rest of the country, the chief concern is the impact of very strong winds on trees still heavily laden with leaves. Falling trees, ripping down power lines and blocking roads have caused fatalities in the storms of recent years.
There is also concern about potential flooding along the Shannon where the ground is already saturated following recent wet weather.
The storm threat prompted a stark warning from Inner City Helping Homeless chief executive Anthony Flynn, who demanded the triggering of emergency weather protocols in cities.
“On average 170 people per night are sleeping rough because they simply cannot access a bed. Extended 24-hour services should be put into operation until this storm passes,” he said.
The Dublin Regional Homeless Executive said it had contingency plans for the storm and would put in place temporary shelter arrangements.
“We are confident there will be sufficient additional emergency spaces to cater for those who require it,” it said.
Met Éireann’s director of forecasting, Evelyn Cusack, warned the precise track of Lorenzo will only be known today.
“While it will give some very wet and very windy weather, perhaps orange weather warnings will be the worst, perhaps touching on a status red on the west and north-west coast, but we won’t be issuing those warnings until Wednesday morning,” Ms Cusack said.
No decision will be taken on advice regarding school closures until later today.
Lorenzo has moved farther north and east across the Atlantic than any other category-five hurricane, producing wind speeds of 260kmh, but it is expected to weaken to a tropical storm when it is within 1,000km of the coast.