People warned of flood risk as Storm Claudia sweeps over Ireland

People have been warned of possible flooding overnight as Storm Claudia sweeps across the island of Ireland.

A Status Orange rain warning is in place for counties Dublin, Wexford and Wicklow until 8am on Saturday, and a Status Yellow rain warning is in place in 10 other counties mostly along the east and south coasts.

These counties are Cork, Kerry, Limerick, Tipperary, Waterford, Carlow, Kildare, Kilkenny, Louth and Meath.

Weather forecaster Met Eireann said that “significant” flooding and hazardous travelling conditions were possible.

On Friday it would be windy nationwide with widespread rain across Munster and Leinster.

It would be much drier across Ulster and Connacht, but a yellow-level rain warning was in place from midnight until noon on Saturday for counties Armagh and Down.

Keith Leonard, national director for Fire and Emergency Management, said local authorities had been preparing since Thursday for heavy rainfall.

He said flooding over the next 24 hours was the main concern, and that fallen leaves clogging drains was a “complicating factor”.

He said the storm arriving from the south rather than the west would bring “the rainfall into slightly different catchments than it might normally hit”.