ALERT: Weather warning extended amid threat of further falls of sleet and snow in Waterford

Met Éireann has extended its status orange snow/ice warning for Waterford as the current cold snap is set to continue for several days.

There was heavy snowfall in parts of the city and county overnight with accumulations severely impacting travel in several areas while almost 30,000 homes, farms and businesses across the country are without electricity.

In an update, issued this Sunday morning, Met Eireann says further falls of sleet and snow are likely in Clare and several other counties this Sunday evening.

A new status orange snow/ice warning for Waterford, Kilkenny, Tipperary, Carlow, Wicklow, Clare, Limerick, Cork, Kerry, Laois and Offaly will come into effect at 5pm and remain valid until 8pm.

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Potential impacts include very difficult travelling conditions, poor visibility, travel disruption and delays to public transport.

Senior officials from Waterford City and County Council attended a briefing by the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management on Saturday and the local authority's Severe Weather Assessment Team (SWAT) is monitoring conditions locally.

The council says the gritting of Priority One and Priority Two roads will be priorities and that ground crews are attending to gritting Priority Three roads as resources allow. 

Gabriel Hynes, Senior Engineer with Waterford City and County Council said: "We would advise all motorists to exercise caution when travelling, allow extra time for your journey and leave extra distance between you and the vehicle in front.  Travelling conditions throughout the evening and night will be difficult, even on gritted roads, so please slow down and be aware of other road users. 

"Footpaths will also be hazardous in the icy conditions, so we are asking pedestrians to take extra care."

Met Eireann, which has also issued a status yellow low temperature/ice warning for all of Ireland, says there will be difficult conditions underfoot and that animal welfare issues are also likely.