Thousands of households and businesses along across the country are without electricity as Storm Kathleen moves across Ireland. 

An Orange wind warning is in effect for Cork, Kerry and Waterford until 2pm, while a separate Status Orange wind warning is in effect for Galway and Mayo until 6pm. 

A level Yellow wind warning is in place for the entire country until 8pm. 

Large clusters of power outages have emerged since the storm started, particularly in Whitechurch, Co Cork, where over 1,500 customers are affected and Ballymote, Co Sligo, where over 1,700 are without power. 

Further east, over 1,500 ESB customers in Baltinglass, Co Wicklow, remain without power. 

Over 1,200 customers are without power at Castlelyons near Fermoy, while over 700 customers are without power at Woodford near Killarney. 

ESB Networks said it hopes to have power restored in most cases by this evening. 

Fault restoration times range across the day, from 12pm in Ballymote to 6pm in Whitechurch.

Amid Storm Kathleen, Dublin Airport operators have said it remains open and operational today. 

Several flights, however, have been unable to land safely due to strong gusts and remain in the air. 

Some flights to the UK have also been cancelled this morning as Storm Kathleen is expected to cause delays and diversions. 

Newcastle, County Down #StormKathleen pic.twitter.com/OCISo3CMRZ

— Patrick Corrigan (@PatrickCorrigan) April 6, 2024

Some rail services may also be interrupted by the impact of Storm Kathleen. Irish rail reported earlier today that a tree had fallen near Monasterevin, affecting services to and from Heuston.  

The strongest recorded gust on the west coast is 112km/h so far. 

The Road Safety Authority (RSA) is asking road users to exercise caution while using the roads on Saturday.  

The Curragh Racecourse announced earlier today that the fixture scheduled for today has been cancelled following a further 4mm of rain in the last 24 hours.  

Storm Kathleen

Cork County Engineer Niall Healy said the weather will hit hard in the morning but will gradually ease as the day continues. 

"The peak period for the warning is the period between 7am and 9am on Saturday," he said. 

"So we'd ask people to try and avoid travelling during those hours. 

"The winds will slacken gradually as the day progresses so the worst of the impact is expected to be between 7am and 9am".