Hurricane Ophelia will turn into a post-tropical storm with winds of up to 130km/h before it hits Ireland on Monday. A status red weather warning applies to the west and an orange alert in the rest of the country. Here is what you can do to minimise damage.
1. Take care on machinery, particularly when opening doors. Get more advice on driving in high winds from the Road Safety Authority in the video below:
Strong winds are expected from 6am Monday – 6am Tuesday. In strong winds, speed should be reduced & extra distance should be allowed. pic.twitter.com/rQVNvLFpbL
— RSA Ireland (@RSAIreland) October 13, 2017
2. Close and secure all shed doors.
3. Check on any exposed galvanised sheets on roofs.
4. Be mindful of loose slates or tiles from older farm buildings.
Property owners should begin work to secure any loose items ahead of RED level weather on Monday. Likelihood of structural damage in Kerry pic.twitter.com/h0dMsFyyxp
— Kerry County Council (@countykerry) October 14, 2017
5. Take in any empty barrels or drums that could get caught in the wind.
6. Safely secure any silage wraps or pit coverings.
7. Ensure any family pets and working dogs are safe.
8. Be mindful of trees or branches near buildings and that ESB lines may be damaged.
May get some petrol and sharpen the chainsaws. #stormcoming #ophelia
— Jim Mulhall (@Jimmulh) October 14, 2017
9. Have torches charged up in case of a power cut and download the Powercheck app to interact with ESB Networks on faults. Get more advice from ESB Networks in the video below:
10. Charge mobile phones and keep a battery-operated radio to hand in case landline phones are disconnected. Emergency messages will be broadcast on RTE stations, Today FM and Newstalk 106 if necessary.
And remember the most important of all pieces of advice:
It's exactly a year since @TeresaMannion gave us this passionate update on Storm Desmond & became a viral sensation pic.twitter.com/7Q6Mkq6tOe
— Entertainment on RTÉ (@RTE_Ents) December 5, 2016