Dangerous Weather Warning For Ireland

There's a major road alert tonight as drivers are warned of 'treacherous icy conditions' on the roads.

As a milder than usual November comes to an end, the cold snap means that winter has really arrived - bringing a big freeze thanks to extremely low temperatures. Although all of NI will be hit with temperatures of around -5C before tomorrow morning, with the coldest conditions expected to be experienced in Fermanagh as well as Armagh and south Down.

A spokesman for the Met Office, who confirmed that the freezing temperatures are arriving later than normal, said: "The freezing temperatures should not make that much difference to the remaining flood waters in Fermanagh, (but) it will maybe make them glaze over slightly, causing more treacherous driving conditions."

In the Irish Republic, many roads have already been considered as 'treacherous' because of the ice, which means danger for motorists with road conditions already blamed for the death of two people this morning.

A teenager died in a traffic accident that involved a single car driven by a 19-year-old boy. It occurred along the Tarbert to Ballylongford road.

The other fatal road traffic collision occurred on the N80, Kilbride, Ballon in Co Carlow this morning. It involved a car and a 4x4 near the White Mills Pub. The male driver of the 4x4 was uninjured but the driver of the car, a female in her late 20s, tragically died.

AA Road Watch have strongly advised motorists to "Slow down!", and said to take care on the roads due to continued flooding and resulting black ice in some areas in the country.

The road conditions have also forced the suspension of driving tests in many parts of the Irish Republic - in Limerick, Thurles, Naas, Mullingar, Castlebar, Tallaght, Donegal, Mallow, Kilkenny, Tuam and Birr.

The centre of Carrick-on-Shannon was also closed off all day because of continued flooding.

Before the big freeze sets in tonight, dry weather with sunny spells is expected, then tomorrow, rain will return with showers on Wednesday and Thursday, across the whole Northern Ireland.

(CL/BMcC)

See: Teen Dies On 'Treacherous' Roads

See: Woman Dies As Road Carnage Continues