Hurricane Katia heading for Ireland!

Irish Examiner:

Ireland braces for impact of Katia winds

Saturday, September 10th 2011

IRELAND will feel the effects of the remains of Hurricane Katia from tomorrow night — as forecasters warned of 160km/h winds causing building damage, coastal flooding, uprooted trees and transport chaos.
Met Éireann was last night considering weather warnings after Britain’s Met Office issued a rare extreme weather alert covering all of Ireland, warning of 128km/h winds on Monday causing sea flooding and "phenomenal" ocean conditions.

Irish forecasters predicted winds of up to 160km/h, with the North seeing the worst winds and sea flooding possible in Donegal Bay as well as in the west — in Galway Bay, the Shannon estuary and other harbours — caused by 15-metre waves out in the Atlantic.

Winds are expected to hit 128km/h in Dublin and 100km/h in Cork, adding that driving could be "very dangerous", especially in the west. Tornados are also a possibility.

Katia, which has been downgraded to a tropical storm, is causing seven-metre waves on the US coast and will spin across the Atlantic this weekend.

The giant storm, with a 160km wide centre and tropical storm force winds across an 800km wide area, is expected to only ease slightly before crashing into the north of Ireland tomorrow night.

Hurricanes can cause huge damage after crossing the Atlantic, as was seen in August 1986, when Hurricane Charley battered Ireland, causing the worst flooding in a century and smashing rainfall records.

Irish Weather Online forecaster Peter O’Donnell said: "This forecast represents the most probable outcome, although there is a one-in-three chance the storm will be less or more intense."

Met Éireann forecaster David Rogers said: "Katia will not technically be a hurricane by the time it reaches us, as it will have made the transition to a very vigorous depression.

"But extreme wind speeds are entirely possible.

"It’s not possible to say if 100mph winds will happen, as there are many variables, but the strongest winds will be on the southern flank of the depression, meaning the north and north-west are most prone to damaging winds.

"Tuesday will still be fairly windy, with Wednesday less so but with unsettled weather continuing."


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