One thing you can always talk about in Ireland – the weather. It’s safe and makes for good small talk.
It’s your usual “Oh, beautiful day today, isn’t it?” “Well, we could do with a bit of rain now.” Who hasn’t had a chat like this? It’s like an Irish pastime.
The Irish love talking about the weather. As an island nation, it does affect them a lot. Usually, it’s all grand, but sometimes even the Irish spirit gets broken by the weather.
7. The “summer” of 2007 – rain and more rain
Frankly, you could argue that the Irish are just a bit obsessed with rain. However, if there is no end to it in sight, it’ll get to the best of them.
The summer of 2007 is remembered as the summer that didn’t happen. Not even that one sunny Tuesday that’s jokingly referred to as summer. It was just rain and more rain.
6. The summer of 2018 – it’s getting hot
Be careful what you wish for. We all want a nice summer, but sometimes the weather gods just mean a little too well. Like in 2018.
With temperatures above 30 degrees, it was declared a heat wave. The constant sweating and sunburns were one thing (definitely not pleasant), but the drought was another negative side effect.
5. The winter of 2010–2011 – time to close the country?
Back in 2010–2011, that was a winter. Cold. Freezing. Lots and lots of snow and ice. If you’re now imagining a beautiful winter wonderland, not quite.
Let’s be real: Ireland is not made for weather extremes. 2010–2011 was definitely extreme. Like -16 degrees in some areas. The result? Road salt shortages! Not cool (sorry for the bad pun).
4. Storm Desmond – extreme flooding
Thinking back to 2015, oh boy, that was not pretty. Storm Desmond caused extreme rainfall. We’re not talking about the kind of rain that makes Ireland nice and green.
No, it was the type of rain that makes you want to build an ark. Homes were left without power, roads were closed, flights were cancelled, severe flooding caused a lot of damage.
3. The Big Snow of 1982 – when the country stopped
1982 might not be your most recent memory, but that winter brought so much snow that you’ve probably heard someone talk about it.
Roads were closed, homes were without power, life stopped. Food delivery trucks were stranded, and people started fighting over bread; milk was getting scarce. It was intense, to say the least.
2. Storm Ophelia in 2017 – one for the record books
Storm Ophelia was the worst storm to hit Ireland in 50 years. It was one of the scariest, too. It caused major power outages, roofs were lifted off, countless trees fell, and it caused crazy coastal flooding.
It was one of those storms that felt apocalyptic. Schools and many businesses were closed, while the country was trying to get through the storm.
1. The Beast from the East of 2018 – Ireland shut down
You know it’s an extreme weather phenomenon when it has an intimidating name. Cue: The Beast from the East. A nationwide Red Alert was issued for it, that’s how intense – almost arctic – it was.
Dublin airport was closed, schools were closed, roads were closed. You can see the pattern here. Ireland was forced to shut down, but every beast can be tamed. Or in this case: Wait for it to be over.
Weather is such a diverse topic. Usually, it’s a safe choice for making conversation. It’s also such an Irish thing. However, every so often it gets so intense that even the Irish won’t say it’s grand any more.
That’s when you know it’s taken on another level. Looking back at these weather events, which one do you remember suffering through?
