Kilkenny to sizzle this week, but thunderstorms also on the horizon: Met Éireann

IT was another pretty miserable weekend weather wise, culminating in a rainfall warning for Kilkenny from Met Éireann which was only lifted at 6am this morning.

However, the national forecaster says the weather will turn increasingly mild and humid over the coming days and it will also become increasingly unsettled as a warm front moves across continental Europe from the Sahara.

Met Éireann said there will be some spells of lovely sunshine at times this week and that temperatures towards the middle of the week will hit the mid-20s or higher. But there will also be some heavy showers and thunderstorms.

The rise in temperatures is being driven by the arrival of a potentially record-breaking heatwave forecast to grip much of continental Europe next week, with temperatures in cities from Spain to Germany expected to exceed 32 degrees and climb to more than 38 degrees in the hottest areas.

Met Éireann said today will be “dull and misty” in Kilkenny and throughout most of Leinster at first, but it’s expected to brighten up later in the morning.

The national forecaster added: “Scattered heavy showers developing in the late morning and afternoon, some prolonged with a risk of hail and thunder. Warm and humid with highest temperatures of 18 to 22 degrees.”

Overnight mist and fog will gradually lift tomorrow, leaving more spells of “hazy sunshine and isolated thunderstorms”, which are most likely to affect Kilkenny and inland parts of South Leinster, and highest temperatures of between 20 to 23 degrees.

On Wednesday, it will be mainly dry, again with spells of hazy sunshine with the risk of the “odd thundery shower”, according to Met Éireann. Temperatures will heat up, with mercury levels rising to as high as 25 degrees at times.

The story remains largely the same for Thursday, although the national forecaster said it will begin to feel “very warm and humid with maximum temperatures of 22 to 27 degrees”.

And it is set to be “exceptionally warm” by Friday, with temperatures rising to up to 28 degrees with prolonged spells of sunshine and just the “odd thunderstorm”, according to Met Éireann.