Weather forecasters in Ireland have issued a further severe weather warning in the run-up to a busy pre-Christmas weekend.
Wind gusts ravaged Ireland with gale force winds knocking out power in thousands of homes across the country. The storm also claimed the life of one young woman.
Aisling Maguire (23) died after a tree smashed onto her car on a road near Mullingar in Co. Westmeath. She worked as a care assistant in a nursing home in her hometown and her colleagues were devastated by the news.
Independent.ie reports that Maguire was loved by all in Moyvore, and had great passion for everything she did, from GAA to her work in the local nursing home.
Her father Gerry, mother Geraldine, and two brothers were being comforted by friends.
Fr Philip Smith, the Ballymore parish priest, said: "I'm only after hearing the news this evening. I was absolutely shocked. It's terrible."
ESB Networks said some 25,000 homes lost power yesterday with the worst affected areas in the northwest of the country
It said most of the customers without electricity were in Co Donegal, where network crews are currently working to restore power.
According to Met Eireann, the yellow level weather alerts are for weather conditions that do not pose an immediate threat to the population, but only to those exposed to risk by nature of their location.
In addition to the strong winds, there was heavy snow in some parts of the country, with particularly heavy falls in the midlands, Tipperary and Mayo.
Meanwhile in Co Galway last night, shocking pictures emerged on social networking pages of the devastation the storm was causing on the West coast of Ireland. Several car parks in Salthill were flooded leaving cars completely submerged in water.
The Irish Times reported that the Cliffs of Moher in Co Clare were closed to the public as a result of the storm.
There were further injuries in Limerick, according to The Irish Times, after a reported tornado in the town of Kilmallock blew a roof off a building injuring three people. Scattered debris. including slates and timber, hurt another two people sitting in a nearby car. They were treated at University Hospital Limerick.
According to authorities in Limerick fire crews responded to what locals described as an isolated tornado. “A shed had been lifted from a garden and was carried over the roofs of buildings on Sarsfield Street, knocking over two chimney stacks on to the street,” a spokesman told The Irish Times.
“In addition to that the roof of a disused shop was lifted off by the tornado injuring three people who were on the street.”
The storm has already caused widespread damage and destruction in Ireland. High winds caused damage at Kent train station in County Cork where a canopy over two of its platforms was blown off. Three people were injured in the incident. One person was taken to hospital, while two others were treated at the scene.
Emergency services in Ireland said that, in general, the conditions had caused widespread transport disruption and advised anyone traveling to do so with extreme caution.
Here is raw video of Cork's Kent Station:
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