Storm Goretti: Snow and rain warning kicks in for Cork and three other counties

Storm Goretti is set to bring sleet, snow and hazardous travel conditions to southern counties from Thursday afternoon

Cork County Council said its road treatment programme will continue, with crews treating priority routes as resources allow

After barely 48 hours’ reprieve, southern parts of the country will again be hit with icy conditions, with four counties under a yellow status snow and rain warning since midday.

Met Éireann said Storm Goretti, which Météo-France named, will bring heavy rain, turning to sleet and snow, to Cork, Kerry, Waterford, and Wexford, particularly at higher elevations.

It said snow accumulations are possible.

The forecaster warned of potentially hazardous travelling conditions, including spot flooding, poor visibility and icy patches.

The warning will remain in place until 8pm.

Cork County Council said its road treatment programme will continue, with crews treating priority routes as resources allow.

“However, due to the low temperatures, the probability of snow and widespread icy patches, difficult travelling conditions can be expected even on treated roads,” it said.

Thursday night will see temperatures fall to lows -2C, with Atlantic and northern counties seeing "a mix of cloud and clear spells with scattered wintry showers".

Temperatures will start to improve by the end of the weekend as Met Éireann said it will begin to "turn milder".

Friday will see a bright and cold day with spells of sunshine, with Met Éireann saying it will be dry for most with isolated showers. However, scattered showers will affect Atlantic and northern counties.

The showers will be a wintry mix of rain, hail and sleet with a little snow possible over higher ground. There's a chance of isolated thunderstorms too, while temperatures will reach highs of 3C to 7C.

Friday night will see the mercury fall to lows of -3C, with the coldest weather being in the North.

Saturday will see "largely dry and bright" weather with just a few showers, some of which could be wintry, while temperatures will hit highs of 4C to 8C. Sunday will follow suit with a dry day to start. However, rain in the southwest "will gradually extend across the country, reaching the northeast in the late afternoon".

The rain may turn heavy in places and also may fall as sleet or snow in parts of the north during the evening.

Temperatures on Saturday may hit double digits in some areas, with Met Éireann saying the highest temperatures will range from 5C in the north to 10C in the south.

Meanwhile, snow and ice disrupted travel across north-west Europe on Wednesday, forcing around 1,000 people to spend the night at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport, while others embraced wintry scenes in Paris, heading out on sledges and skis.

Storm Goretti moved in from the Atlantic coast, hitting Paris with heavy snowfall at daybreak, which triggered further flight cancellations, traffic congestion and transport disruption after days of delays.

More than 1,000 travellers spent the night at Schiphol Airport after hundreds of flights were cancelled on Wednesday morning, marking the sixth consecutive day of disruption at one of Europe’s busiest hubs.