Storm Bram: 54,000 without power; orange weather warning across country; dozens of flights cancelled and Dart disruption

Ellen O'Donoghue

Around 54,000 homes, businesses and farms across the State are without power, as of 4pm on Tuesday.

ESB has said the worst affected counties are Wexford, Cork, Tipperary, Kildare, Dublin, Meath and Westmeath and that further outages can be expected as Storm Bram makes its way across the country.

Met Éireann has also extended an orange weather warning to the entire country.

ESB Networks crews are mobilised across all affected areas, working to assess damage, make the network safe, and restore electricity supply where it is safe to do so.

ESB Networks advises if you come across fallen wires or a damaged electricity network, never, ever touch or approach these as they are live and extremely dangerous and report any damage to electricity infrastructure by calling 1800 372 999.

Gas Networks Ireland has said it does not anticipate disruption to gas supplies during Storm Bram.

If you smell gas at home or on the street, it is advised to call 1800 20 50 50 immediately.

Transport

Rail services are currently suspended between Grand Canal Dock and Dún Laoghaire in Dublin due to a tree interfering with the overheard power lines for the Dart, according to the Irish Times.

91 flights have been cancelled by airlines at Dublin Airport so far, with around 10 flights diverted to other airports.

The Irish Times reports that Ireland’s longest bridge, the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Bridge, has had to close following increasing wind speeds.

The bridge, which crosses the river Barrow between Wexford and Kilkenny, a distance of 887 metres, will only reopen when wind speeds have decreased sufficiently.

Warnings

Water Safety Ireland also urges the public to stay away from all waterways during Storm Bram, including coastal areas, rivers, lakes, and flood-prone zones.

Risks include powerful waves, sudden surges, fast-flowing currents, and rapidly rising water levels.

Storm Bram has brought very strong to gale force southerly winds with severe gusts.

The track of the storm means forecasters have put in place rolling orange wind warnings throughout the day.

#StormBram will bring very windy or stormy conditions to Ireland today.

Southerly winds, veering westerly through the day, will be very strong to gale force, with some damaging gusts also expected⚠️

Persistent & heavy rain at first will gradually clear to scattered showers☔️ pic.twitter.com/eKw5gUeeiR

— Met Éireann (@MetEireann) December 9, 2025

After a week of persistent rain, Met Éireann has said soils across the country are already highly saturated and many rivers are approaching bank-full conditions, so any additional rainfall is likely to result in surface and river flooding.

Earlier today

Rolling weather warnings

Carlow, Kilkenny, Wexford, Wicklow, Cork, Kerry, Limerick, Tipperary and Waterford are under an orange wind warning until 4pm. This was originally set to expire at 3pm, but has since been extended.

Cavan, Monaghan, Clare, Dublin, Kildare, Laois, Longford, Louth, Meath, Offaly, Westmeath, and all of Connacht are under an orange wind warning until 7pm. That warning started at 11am.

Co Donegal will be under the weather warning from 2pm until 9pm.

The entire country has been under a yellow wind warning from 6am, and will be until 9pm.

Impacts of the storm will likely include coastal flooding, especially during high tide, wave overtopping, difficult travel conditions, debris and loose objects being displaced, power outages and impacts on outdoor events.

A status yellow rain warning was in place on Monday night in Carlow, Kilkenny, Wexford, Cork, Kerry, Tipperary and Waterford, and expired at 9am.

Warnings in Irish waters have also been upgraded with a status orange storm warning for all coasts and on the Irish Sea, applying until midnight.

In addition, two red marine warnings are in place between 8am and 3pm, combined with a similar advisory between midday and 8pm from Loop Head to Erris Head to Malin Head.

In Northern Ireland, the UK Met Office has issued a yellow wind warning for the entire region between 9am and 10pm.

A more severe amber warning for wind is in place for the western part of Northern Ireland, applying to counties Antrim, Fermanagh, Derry, and Tyrone between 2pm and 7pm.

The Met Office advised the public to expect delays to transport services and further warned that cancellations are possible.

It added that there was a chance of injuries and danger to life from flying debris, as well as damage to buildings and power outages.

Forecasters said gusts of around 50-60 mph are possible fairly widely across the region, and potentially in excess of 70mph for some exposed headlands and areas of high ground.

Forecasters are advising that south to southwest winds will occasionally reach violent storm force 11.

Gusts of 113km/h were recorded at Roches Point, and 100km/h were recorded at Cork Airport, according to Carlow Weather on X.

A day to be 'very, very careful'

After a week of persistent rain, Met Éireann has said soils across the country are already highly saturated and many rivers are approaching bank-full conditions, so any additional rainfall is likely to result in surface and river flooding.

Keith Leonard, national director of the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management, said: “The conditions associated with orange level wind warnings can be very dangerous.

“Potential impacts include the possibility of structural damage, fallen trees and flying debris – presenting a risk to both life and property.

“Driving can be particularly hazardous in these conditions, so I’m asking all drivers to anticipate strong cross winds and other hazards such as falling or fallen trees.

“High-sided vehicles and motorcyclists are particularly vulnerable to strong winds – so please slow down and give extra space to pedestrians and cyclists.

“I’d also ask the organisers of events and activities to consider the wind warnings that are in place and monitor the local conditions – unfortunately the cancellation of events may be necessary in some locations.”

Met Éireann forecaster Gerry Kelly said it was a day to be “very, very careful”.

He told RTÉ's Morning Ireland: “It is going to be a very windy day everywhere, and there is certainly a possibility for all areas to reach those levels for a time.”

He particularly highlighted a risk of coastal flooding in the south of the country during high tide on Tuesday morning.

Travel disruption

The storm resulted in some travel disruption with 73 flights cancelled at Dublin Airport.

The airport warned that further cancellations are possible.

Storm Bram has led to four cancelled flights and one diversion at Cork Airport this morning.

Two departing flights at Shannon Airport have been delayed, while one arrival has been cancelled.

A number of flights have also been cancelled at Belfast City Airport due to the storm.

As of 9.30am it was the worst-affected UK airport where at least 18 departures and arrivals were grounded, most of them were Aer Lingus regional flights.

British Airways also cancelled a number of departures from London Heathrow to Belfast City Airport.

Amendments have been made for domestic travel as Waterford train station closed due to flooding.

Bus transfers are being arranged to operate between Kilkenny and Waterford.

All P&O Ferries have been cancelled between Larne in Northern Ireland and Cairnryan in Scotland, except for 11.59pm departures, which are expected to be delayed.

Stena Line and Irish Ferries have also had several sailings cancelled or delayed due to the marine weather warnings.

Cancelled events

Today’s race at Punchestown has also been cancelled due to Storm Bram.

Information on rescheduling will follow.

The poor weather has resulted in the closure of the Belfast Christmas Market on Tuesday.

Organisers said: “We recognise this may be disappointing, however the safety of our visitors and traders is of the utmost importance.

“At the moment the plan is to reopen on Wednesday December 10, however this is weather dependent.”

Galway's Christmas Market will also remain closed today because of the weather warning.

Management at the Cliffs of Moher confirmed the site would remain closed today, as will Bunratty Castle and Folk Park.

Muckross House and Killarney House in the Killarney National Park are both closed today, the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) have said.

In Cork, Cork County Council has cancelled the Macroom Christmas Market due to be held in the Square today due to the status orange weather warning.

A farm hazardous waste collection day in Listowel, Co Kerry today has been postponed due to the weather.

The collection day was due to take place at Listowel Mart.

The Department of Agriculture has confirmed the hazardous waste collection day has been postponed, and rescheduled for next week, Tuesday December 16th from 9am to 4pm, The Irish Times reported.

School closures

A large number of primary and secondary schools, as well as creche facilities, have also closed due to Storm Bram.

In the case of an orange warning, the decision to close lies with the school management authority. However, if a red warning was in place, schools would automatically have to close.

In particular areas such as Sligo, Galway and Donegal, a large number of schools have closed.

Several schools in Co Donegal have said they are closing at 12.35pm or 1pm to accommodate students and staff members getting home safely before the orange wind warning comes into effect at 2pm until 9pm.

Mayo College of Further Education and Training has also said it will remain closed today because of the storm.

Additional reporting: PA