Thousands without power in NI as ‘life-threatening’ Storm Éowyn arrives

Pacemaker Very large fallen tree blocking entire road, digger pictured in front of it with man in hi viz holding a chainsawPacemaker

Very dangerous conditions, like fallen trees on roads, are expected – like this one during Storm Darragh in December

Storm Éowyn has begun battering Northern Ireland, bringing with it winds of more than 90mph and leaving 93,000 homes and businesses without power.

Red warnings are in place in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland for the first time.

Schools, colleges and universities are closed and most hospital appointments have been cancelled as significant disruption is expected as a result of the storm.

The rare red weather warning will be in effect across Northern Ireland until 14:00 GMT.

The Met Office has said there is a danger to life and political leaders have urged people to stay at home.

A number of businesses, including supermarkets Lidl, Tesco and Sainsbury’s , are also closed in light of the severe winds.

Public transport service provider Translink has cancelled all bus and train services during the red alert.

In the Republic of Ireland, there are more than 560,000 properties without power.

Provisional new records for wind speed have been recorded in the Republic Ireland, with hurricane-force sustained winds of 85 mph (137 km/h) at Mace Head, County Galway.

There were gusts of 114 mph (183 km/h) recorded at the same location.

The previous records were sustained wind of 81mph (131 km/h) and gusts of 113 mph (182 km/h), both recorded in Limerick in 1945.

In Northern Ireland the strongest gusts have been recorded in Kilowen, County Down at just over 92mph (148km/h).

The record for Northern Ireland is 124mph which was recorded at Kilkeel in 1974.

What is the advice?

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) has advised members of the public to take all necessary precautions to keep themselves safe and not travel.

The PSNI issued the following advice:

  • Ensure your devices are charged
  • Ensure you have emergency lighting such as torches easily accessible in the event of power cuts
  • Have ready access to additional blankets or sources of warmth in the event your heating supply is disrupted
  • Make checks with your vulnerable family, friends and neighbours to ensure they have adequate provisions in place if carers and so on cannot reach them
  • In an emergency call 999

Gardaí (Irish police) are attending a serious road traffic collision on the N14, just north of Lifford.

Supt Liam Geraghty said: “This incident actually happened in an orange wind warning in the Donegal area which has now gone to a red warning. Our appeal to people is to shelter.”

grey placeholderPA Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly in a purple suit jacket and black top, Ass Ch Cons Davy Beck in PSNI uniform, white shirt with police badges and black tie, and First Minister Michelle O'Neill wearing a black blazer and green blouse, stood at a NI exuctive backdrop with black podiums and microphones as they held a press conference on Thursday at StormontPA

Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly, Ass Ch Cons Davy Beck and First Minister Michelle O’Neill held a press conference on Thursday at Stormont

On Thursday, First Minister Michelle O’Neill advised people to work from home and avoid unnecessary travel.

She added that she wanted to emphasise that a red warning was very serious and was only used when there was a genuine threat to life.

Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly added that people should stay inside where possible.

Education Minister Paul Givan said he understood the closure of schools would affect pupils and businesses but the decision had been taken “to avoid any potential risk to life for children and young people as well as staff”.

The UK government issued the “largest real life use to date” of its Emergency Alert system, notifying about 4.5 million people of severe weather in Northern Ireland and parts of Scotland.

grey placeholderScreengrab from a mobile alert that reads "Notification centre - severe alert issued by the UK and NI governments

A red warning for wind has been issued. Extremely strong winds associated with Storm Eowyn are expected to cause significant disruption from 07:00am on Friday 24 January 2025. Strong winds can present a danger to life causing flying debris, falling trees and large waves around coastal areas. Stay indoors.

An alert was sent on Thursday to phones warning of high winds

Have flights been cancelled?

grey placeholderAn elevated screen reads 'departures' in black font and a yellow background. Below that is a list of destinations with their flight status beside them. There are 10 destinations listed, six of them are cancelled. The other four haver not been cancelled. A white steel roof can be seen above the board.

A departures board at Belfast City Airport showed cancelled flights on Thursday evening

A number of flights from Belfast City Airport have been cancelled, while Belfast International Airport and City of Derry Airport have also warned people to expect delays and cancellations.

Dublin Airport said there could be “some disruption” to Friday’s flight schedule and that passengers should contact their airline directly for updates.

P&O has announced ferry cancellations between Larne and Cairnryan from 04:00 to noon and Stena Line services between Ireland and Great Britain are also severely disrupted.

Ireland West Airport in County Mayo will be closed until 13:00.

Hospital appointments

Four of Northern Ireland’s health trusts are advising that all appointments are cancelled, or should be considered cancelled, unless you have been contacted specifically to say otherwise.

The South Eastern, Belfast, Western and Northern health trusts all said this included red flag cancer referrals and all scheduled appointments, with “significant disruption” expected.

The exception is emergency departments and care, which will be operating as normal.

The Southern Health Trust says all outpatient appointments and all elective surgery, including red flag and urgent, are cancelled.

Storm Éowyn weather forecast

Watch: The latest forecast as Storm Éowyn causes red weather warning

Storm Éowyn is the fifth named storm of the season. It has been caused by powerful jet stream winds pushing low pressure towards the UK and Ireland over the Atlantic Ocean after a recent cold spell over North America.

Red is the most serious weather warning the Met Office can issue, meaning dangerous weather is expected and people are urged to take action to keep themselves and others safe.

It is the first time a red weather warning has been issued for Northern Ireland since an impact-based system was introduced in 2011.

Winds are expected to rapidly increase on Friday morning with peak gusts of 80-90 mph (130-145 km/h) and possibly up to 100mph along some exposed coasts.

Further amber and yellow warnings will remain in place on Friday.

There are other warnings across parts of the United Kingdom.

grey placeholderGraphic showing red weather warnings across Ireland

In the Republic of Ireland, Met Éireann has warned that “severe, damaging and destructive winds” are expected.

Speaking to RTÉ, chairman of the National Emergency Co-ordination Group said Storm Éowyn would “probably be among the severest storms” Ireland had ever seen.

Gardaí warned all members of the public that a red severe weather warning means “shelter in place”.

Meanwhile, a yellow warning for strong wind has been issued for Northern Ireland on from 08:00 – 15:00 on Sunday.

The Met Office is expecting a further period of strong of strong winds with gusts up to 60mph (100km/h) quite widely, and up to 70mph (115km/h) around exposed coasts and hills.

Emergency contacts

To report faults or emergencies you should contact:

  • Northern Ireland Housing Executive: 03448 920 901
  • Openreach: 08000 23 20 23
  • Gas networks: 0800 002001
  • NI Water: 03457 44 00 88 or visit niwater.com
  • Flooding Incident Line: 0300 2000 100
  • NIE Networks: 03457 643 643 or visit nienetworks.co.uk

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