Ireland water shut-offs confirmed in multiple areas amid 2 Met Eireann heatwave warnings & ‘turning hotter’ 3-day alert

UISCE Eireann has confirmed night-time water restrictions will come into effect in some areas tonight.

Households across the country have been urged to conserve water amid concerns about shortages as the country bakes in a record heatwave.

Speaking to RTE, Uisce Eireann Regional Operations Manager Stephen Bourke said: “Unfortunately, night-time restrictions are a reality in some parts of the country already.

“North Kildare, for example, we will have to shut off certain areas for approximately 12 hours, from 6pm to 6am, in places like Allenwood and Prosperous.

“Similarly, the Cooley Peninsula is another area where demand has got really high. Unfortunately, we need to restrict supply at night-time so we can replenish the reservoirs.”

Night-time restrictions in the Greater Dublin Area are still being considered and may be introduced if water usage is not reduced.

Uisce Eireann explained that water is being consumed quicker than it can be produced and local reservoirs can be replenished,

And it said it is doing everything it can to avoid further night-time restrictions.

The provider also said it is considering a hosepipe ban.

The restrictions come as the current heatwave is set to continue into next week.

A Met Eireann Status Yellow high-temperature warning has been issued for Clare, Cork, Kerry, Limerick, Tipperary, Galway, Mayo, Kilkenny, Laois and Offaly.

It comes into effect from 1pm on Sunday until 7am on Tuesday.

A Status Yellow high-temperature warning covering Carlow, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laois, Longford, Meath, Offaly, Westmeath, Wexford, Cork, Limerick, Tipperary and Waterford is in place until 7am tomorrow morning.

The forecaster said there would be maximum temperatures in excess of 27C, combined with overnight minimum temperatures in excess of 15C.

And the heat now looks set to stay.

Speaking on next week’s forecast, Cathal Nolan from Ireland’s Weather Channel said: “Wednesday, Thursday and Friday look very interesting.

“It’s going to turn, if anything, hotter for those three days, and we will see temperatures getting into the low 30s a little bit more widely in parts of the southwest and the midwest of the country.”

There are also early indications that the warm weather could continue well into August.

Speaking on the coming weeks, Kenneth McDonagh, from the Donegal Weather Channel, said: “The forecast suggests above-average atmospheric pressure over Ireland during August.

“This increases the likelihood of high-pressure systems being more frequent than normal.”

Meanwhile, Uisce Eireann is also appealing to farms, households and businesses in a number of areas to conserve water during the hot weather.

It has asked everyone in the Greater Dublin Area to adopt water-saving habits, which it said would help safeguard a reliable water supply for all and avoid more restrictive measures having to be taken.

The appeal comes on foot of a new record for daily water use in the GDA, where 693 million litres were used in one day.

This is eight million litres more than the last reported record in May and 50 million litres above the year-to-date average.

It said this level of use places significant pressure on the water network.

Other regions outside of the GDA being urged to conserve water are the Cooley Peninsula, west Cork and parts of north Cork, south Leitrim and Tipperary.

Margaret Attridge, Head of Water Operations with Uisce Eireann, said: “We know people want to enjoy their gardens and outdoor spaces during the good weather, but treated drinking water is a precious resource and demand is currently at record levels.

“We are asking customers to drop the hose and avoid using sprinklers, particularly for watering lawns. While grass may turn yellow during dry spells, it typically recovers quickly when rain returns.”