Farmers in Kerry have been supporting the Health Service Executive (HSE) to deliver essential medical supplies to remote areas of the county this week as a severe cold snap grips the country.

Speaking to the Irish Farmers Journal, Kerry Irish Farmers' Association (IFA) county chair Jason Fleming said that farmers are also ensuring medical professionals get to work, are able to check in on the elderly and making sure that they have enough food and solid fuel.

"There's talks of -8°C and -10°C, so conditions are going to be treacherous [on Wednesday] when it freezes on top of the snow. There's no thaw at all.

"In fairness to farmers, they're stepping up to the mark and putting their shoulders to the wheel and making sure people are looked after. They're towing cars off roads, cutting trees that are blocking and clearing the roads.

"We have 66 IFA branches across Kerry and they've all been contacted. They just say when and where and they're there," Fleming said.

The roads across the county, Fleming said, are lethal and while the county council is gritting the main roads, there are no by-roads being done.

"They might not even be passable on a tractor [on Wednesday]," he said.

Solid fuel

"A lot of people living in rural areas depend on stoves and open fires - a heat pump is no good to these people if they have no power. There's thousands of people here with no power. The Government are promoting heat pumps and the likes, but there doesn't seem to be a plan B when we have no power.

"We're all about supporting the environment, but if you've a person and they've no power, no water and no chimney or no stove, what's plan B?" Fleming questioned.

Orange warning

Met Éireann has issued an orange low temperature/ice warning for 22 counties.

The national forecaster has said it will be extremely cold from 8pm on Tuesday, with widespread severe frost, ice and lying snow.

Lowest temperatures will be of -3°C to -8°C generally, locally lower, with a severe frost and icy stretches.

These conditions are expected to last until 10am on Wednesday in Carlow, Cavan, Clare, Cork, Galway, Kerry, Kildare, Kilkenny, Leitrim, Laois, Limerick, Longford, Mayo, Meath, Monaghan, Offaly, Roscommon, Sligo, Tipperary, Waterford, Westmeath and Wicklow.

From Tuesday evening at 6pm until Wednesday morning at 11am, Leinster, Cavan, Monaghan, Munster and Connacht will remain in an orange low temperature warning.