'A bad night’: Cork authorities warn against travel as Storm Austen brings heavy rain

Met Éireann warns of surface flooding and difficult Friday morning commutes as councils prepare for heavy rainfall and possible disruption

An orange rain warning for Cork, Kerry and Waterford is due to come into effect on Thursday night as Storm Austen moves across Ireland.

The first named storm of the year is expected to bring intense rainfall, causing disruption and delays to public transport, flooding and very difficult travelling conditions.

The orange warning will come into effect at 10pm on Thursday and remain in place until 5am on Friday.

A second orange warning will take effect at 2am on Friday for Dublin, Wexford and Wicklow as Storm Austen spreads eastwards across the country. It will remain in place until 8am.

Separately, a yellow rain warning will come into effect at 7pm on Thursday for all of Munster and Leinster.

Met Éireann has said strong easterly winds will turn northwesterly and strengthen further, particularly in the south and southeast, with heavy rain expected.

Potential impacts include difficult travelling conditions, localised flooding, displaced debris and loose objects, disruption to outdoor events and fallen trees or branches.

Surface flooding the main concern

Met Éireann meteorologist Gerry Murphy warned that it would be wet “everywhere in the country on Thursday”.

Rainfall totals are expected to reach between 40mm and 60mm in counties under orange warnings overnight, he said.

“So, a very wet evening and night in store. Flooding is likely, and that flooding is likely to be mainly surface flooding. Coastal flooding is not quite as likely on the south coast, because the winds will be blowing away; the main winds will be north-westerly so they'll be blowing offshore,” Mr Murphy told RTÉ's Morning Ireland on Thursday.

Tides are not expected to be high, making coastal flooding less likely, he added. River flooding remains a possibility in smaller catchments, particularly on higher ground, but is less likely in larger catchments because rivers still have capacity following a relatively dry summer and limited rainfall so far.

“Surface flooding will be the greatest impact with regard to flooding, and those counties along the south and the east coast will get the highest amounts.” 

Starting mostly dry w/ sunny spells & well-scattered showers across parts of the SW, W & N 🌦️

The afternoon will turn wet & windy as Storm Austen tracks to the S w/ very heavy rain developing in the SW, extending northeastwards by the evening ⚠️

Highs of 10 to 14°C 🌡️ pic.twitter.com/QRTvJIQXFD

— Met Éireann (@MetEireann) October 22, 2026

Mr Murphy warned that rain would affect the entire country, prompting yellow-level warnings in many areas, particularly across Munster and Leinster. Flooding could also affect parts of east Ulster.

He added that heavy rain along the east coast on Friday morning could affect people travelling to work and school.

“So, certainly for rush hour then, there is likely to be floods on many of the roads, and it will be a difficult enough morning for rush hour tomorrow morning in the east and indeed in the south as well. The south will get a lot of rain overnight.”

Cork authorities urge caution

The director of Cork County Council, Pádraig Barrett, has urged people to exercise caution if they need to go out on Thursday evening.

He said it would be “a bad night, not a night for driving, not a night for going out”, and urged people who had to travel to take care, with the warning extending into Friday morning.

Flood response plans have been prepared, with sandbags and pumps deployed where necessary, he said. He also encouraged people to secure loose items in their gardens and exercise caution when driving.

“We're preparing for flooding and hopeful that won't happen; there's a risk to all areas of the county, so it's hard to say where it's going to impact specifically,” he told RTÉ's Morning Ireland.

Cork City Council has urged road users to allow extra time for journeys to work, school and college on Friday and to “expect the unexpected”.

The council's Severe Weather Plan has been activated in preparation for potential impacts.

The public is being urged to avoid unnecessary journeys, take care in areas where buildings may have suffered structural damage, stay away from exposed quays, fallen electricity lines and trees, and secure loose outdoor items and construction sites.