Icy stretches and sharp frost for Cork this weekend

Overnight temperatures are expected to plummet on Saturday evening, with Met Éireann issuing a status yellow low temperature and ice warning for Cork and 16 other counties.

Icy stretches are expected across Cork city and county, with the national forecaster predicting that temperatures are likely to drop as low as -4 degrees in many areas, causing sharp or severe frost.

Met Éireann has warned of likely hazardous travel conditions in affected areas.

The counties covered by the status yellow weather warning are: Carlow, Clare, Cork, Dublin, Kerry, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laois, Limerick, Longford, Meath, Offaly, Tipperary, Waterford, Westmeath, Wexford, and Wicklow.

Temperatures are expected to drop from 6pm on Saturday evening onward, with the warning remaining in place until 11am on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Met Éireann has issued a separate status yellow snow and ice warning for Donegal, which will come into effect at 8pm on Friday night and will remain in place until 11am on Saturday morning.

Wintry showers are expected in affected areas, with some snow accumulations likely, and sharp or severe frost and ice also.

Hazardous travel conditions and poor visibility are likely throughout the period of the status yellow warning.

That warning coincides with a UK Met Office status yellow snow and ice warning for the six counties, which comes into effect at 3pm on Friday for Antrim, Armagh, Down, Fermanagh, Tyrone, Derry, and remains in place until midday on Saturday.

Met Éireann’s snow and ice warning will extend to eight other counties in the northern half of the country on Saturday evening, covering Cavan, Donegal, Galway, Leitrim, Louth, Mayo, Monaghan, Roscommon, and Sligo.

That status yellow weather alert comes into effect at 6pm on Saturday and will remain in place until 11am on Sunday.

With northwest to north winds expected to reach force 6 or higher, a small craft warning from Slyne Head to Belfast Lough to Dungarvan will remain in place until 9pm on Saturday.