The aftermath of Storm Éowyn has been felt across Northern Ireland with 189,000 properties still without electricity as of Saturday, 30% of homes and businesses were affected at the peak of the storm. Killowen in County Down observed the highest gust in 27 years, with 92.2mph (148km/h) recorded. Schools, colleges, universities and businesses all closed and most hospital appointments were cancelled. Rail and bus services and flights were also affected. The red weather warning, which came into place on Friday morning, ended at 14:00 GMT.
Before the storm hit, the Met Office issued a danger to life warning and urged the public to stay at home. The rare red weather warning was issued in Northern Ireland from 19:00 on Friday until 10:00 on Saturday which warned of a further risk of snow and ice. As the day progressed, damage to buildings and trees occurred, blocking roads and damaging homes. Derek Hynes from Northern Ireland Electricity (NIE) confirmed over 4,000 locations in Northern Ireland were damaged by the wind or falling trees and described the situation as “devastating levels of damage.”
A spokesperson for Translink revealed “unprecedented damage” for the rail network, with dozens of incidents across the rail network seeing trees down on tracks and barriers and other structures damaged. Rail lines will be opened gradually due to the “extensive damage” across the network.
The Republic of Ireland also experienced significant damage, with a tree falling on a man driving in Raphoe and causing him to tragically lose his life. About 540,000 properties remain without power, down from a peak of 768,000 earlier on Friday. ESB Networks has described the storm as “record-breaking,” having never suffered so many power cuts in the country before.
Storm Herminia has also been named by the Spanish Met Office, and although it is not forecast to be as severe for Northern Ireland as Storm Éowyn, a wind warning has been issued for Northern Ireland on Sunday. With gusts between 50 to 60 mph, Operation Clean Up throughout parts of Northern Ireland could be hampered
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