Thousands without water and electricity as cold snap grips RoI

BBC:

Thousands of customers in the Republic of Ireland are still without water and electricity as snow and icy weather conditions continue to grip much of the country.

All non-urgent outpatients appointments in a number of hospitals have been cancelled and thousands of homes are without power.

Schools in several counties were closed on the first day of term.

Bus and rail services were also impacted as a result of the conditions, which were most prominently felt in counties Cork, Kerry, Tipperary and Limerick, and southern Leinster.

Irish national weather forecaster Met Éireann issued a fresh yellow warning for snow and ice on Monday afternoon for the entire country until 06:00 local time on Friday.

An orange warning for low temperatures and ice issued for 22 counties, came into effect at 20:00 on Tuesday and is in place until 10:00 on Wednesday.

The warning is for counties Carlow, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laois, Longford, Meath, Offaly, Westmeath, Wicklow, Cavan, and Monaghan, as well as Munster and Connacht.

A separate orange warning for low temperatures will come in at 18:00 on Wednesday and will last until 11:00 on Thursday morning.

That warning is for Leinster, Munster and Connacht, as well as counties Cavan and Monaghan.

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