As of Wednesday, September 30, 2026, approximately 18,000 properties across Ireland remain without electricity following a severe battering of heavy winds and rain that swept the country. ESB Networks crews have been deployed since first light to address widespread outages, though the utility provider warns that restoration efforts will stretch into Wednesday night.
The Scale of the Outages Across the West and South
The destructive weather system, which packed very strong and gusty south-easterly winds, knocked out power supplies for thousands of homes south of a line stretching from Galway to Dublin. The worst-hit pockets are heavily concentrated in the west, southwest, and midlands. According to the ESB Networks Power Check app, blackouts stretch from Portmagee in County Kerry, through Crosshaven and Cork City, and as far east as Dublin and Arklow in County Wicklow. Additional faults were recorded across counties Limerick, Tipperary, and Kilkenny.
While emergency crews successfully restored supply to tens of thousands of premises throughout Tuesday, roughly 18,000 customers woke up to dark homes on Wednesday. Dublin Fire Brigade and local authorities reported multiple road blockages caused by fallen trees, branches, and flying debris. In Swords, County Dublin, a falling tree brought down power lines directly onto a stationary car along the Malahide Road, prompting a full road closure while emergency services awaited ESB intervention. In Adamstown, west Dublin, more than 3,000 premises lost power, alongside another 1,000 properties near Bray, County Wicklow.
Weather Warnings Expire as Focus Shifts to Repairs
The severe weather prompting the chaos began to subside late Tuesday. Met Éireann confirmed that a status yellow wind warning for all of Munster, as well as counties Galway, Mayo, and Sligo, expired at 9pm on Tuesday. A separate status yellow rain warning for Wexford and Wicklow remained active until 4am on Wednesday, carrying persistent threats of localized flooding, poor visibility, and hazardous driving conditions.
Coastal areas faced compounding threats from a dangerous cocktail of spring tides, storm surges, and strong onshore winds that caused wave overtopping. Cork City experienced notable surface flooding from heavy downpours. By Wednesday morning, Carlow Weather’s Alan O’Reilly confirmed that a calmer meteorological state had arrived, noting a mix of sunny spells and scattered showers alongside lingering breezes.
ESB Safety Directives and Restoration Timelines
ESB Networks has urged the public to exercise extreme caution near damaged infrastructure. Crews continue to work around the clock, with officials stating that the vast majority of impacted customers will see their power restored by Wednesday evening. However, lingering faults in isolated rural pockets may keep some homes in the dark overnight.
Residents in affected areas have been advised to monitor real-time updates via the ESB Power Check app and to strictly avoid fallen or low-hanging electricity wires.
Looking Ahead at the Rest of the Week
Meteorological forecasts point toward improving conditions as the week progresses. Thursday is expected to be largely dry with sunny spells, though showery rain will develop in the west by late afternoon and spread eastward overnight. Friday will bring a similar mix of sunshine and scattered heavy showers clearing toward the east.
The weekend holds a more stable promise. Saturday is shaping up to be the standout day of the weekend, with national forecasters predicting mainly dry conditions and bright, sunny spells—particularly across Leinster and Munster. Sunday will introduce cloudier skies and rain in the west and north before pushing southeastward into the afternoon.
