Dublin: Europe’s first named storm of the year—Storm Goretti—is on course to hit parts of Britain and northern France later this week. The system was officially named by Météo France, with Met Éireann signalling that Ireland is expected to escape the worst of the weather.
According to Met Éireann, while the storm will produce powerful winds and heavy precipitation in nearby regions, its current track keeps it south of Ireland.
Met Office forecaster Linda Hughes noted that the most significant impacts are projected for southern England and northern France, adding that Ireland would only face meaningful disruption if the storm were to shift further north, which remains unlikely.
However, some gusty conditions may affect parts of the south coast, and ferry services could still experience delays or cancellations.
Storm Goretti is forecast to bring heavy snow, strong winds and travel disruption when it sweeps east on Thursday. Southern England, south Wales and northern France are expected to see the most severe conditions.
In preparation, the UK Health Security Agency has extended amber cold-health alerts across England through Sunday afternoon amid continuing unusually cold weather across Europe.
The freezing conditions have already had serious consequences.
At least six deaths linked to the cold have been reported in France and the Balkans, hundreds of flights have been cancelled at Paris airports, and snowfall has forced school closures in Scotland.
Eastern Europe is also experiencing widespread freezing conditions.
Ireland remains in a prolonged cold snap, which is expected to persist for several nights. Hughes emphasised that meteorologists are continuing to monitor Storm Goretti’s trajectory closely.
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