A number of weather warnings will take effect tomorrow as the impact of the Hurricane Lorenzo is felt across the country.
By the time it reaches Ireland it will be downgraded to a powerful storm.
Waterford City and County Council says at present there is a Yellow warning in place for Waterford from 9am tomorrow to 6am on Friday.
They have arrangements in place to close the promenade in Tramore and have brought large sand bags down and put them in place near vulnerable premises.
Their teams are on standby in the event of a status update.
The National Emergency Co-Ordination Group has been meeting this morning to discuss measures that may need to be taken to minimise the storm's impact.
Three weather warnings have been issued by Met Éireann as Hurricane Lorenzo approaches Ireland, including a status orange wind warning for six western counties.
Status yellow wind and rain warnings will apply to the whole country from 9am Thursday morning until Friday morning.
Wind speeds will average between 50kph and 65kph, with gusts as high as 100kph "resulting in some disruptive impacts".
Spells of heavy rain, in excess of 50mm in parts of the west and northwest, are expected to result in some flooding.
Cork, Kerry, Limerick, Clare, Galway, and Mayo are subject to a status orange wind warning from 6pm Thursday evening.
Winds will reach mean speeds of 65kph to 80kph, with gusts generally between 100kph and 130kph.
Gusts will be stronger in coastal regions, where storm surges are expected to cause coastal flooding and damage.
The orange warning is valid until 3am on Friday morning, while the status yellow wind warning runs until 6am and the rain warning until 9am.
The National Emergency Coordination Group is guided by Met Éireann as to the level of alerts. It is a cascading effect, he explained, from Red Alert down to Yellow Alert and that determines decisions such as when public transport should stop.
One of the benefits of Hurricane Lorenzo is that it will hit Ireland late in the evening, he said, when, hopefully, most people will be home and safe. Protocols for the homeless are in place, he added.
PHOTO - NOEL BROWNE
