Status Yellow weather warnings for 18 counties

Status Yellow weather warnings will come into place on Sunday for 18 counties across Ireland.

A Status Yellow wind and rain warning for Clare, Cork, Kerry, Limerick, Waterford, Donegal, Galway, Leitrim, Mayo, Sligo, Wexford and Wicklow is valid from from 2am to 3pm.

Met Éireann warned of difficult travel conditions, localised flooding, fallen trees, loose debris and poor visibility.

A Status Yellow wind warning for Donegal, Galway, Leitrim, Mayo and Sligo will then be valid from 3pm to midnight.

In Northern Ireland, a Yellow wind warning may lead to disruption for counties Antrim, Armagh, Down, Fermanagh, Tyrone and Derry.

This warning is valid from 3am to 3pm on Sunday.

Meanwhile, the UK Met Office said that strong and gusty southerly winds would cause disruption to transport and infrastructure in counties Antrim, Armagh and Down today.

The warning for these counties was in place until 1pm.

A wind and rain weather alert - for counties Carlow, Kilkenny, Wexford, Wicklow and Waterford - expired at 10am.

During these alerts, members of the public were warned of potential difficult travelling conditions, localised flooding, fallen trees or branches and the displacement of debris and loose objects.

An earlier weather alert for Cork and Kerry expired at 8am.

Tomorrow forecast to be 'lovely day' - meteorologist

Met Éireann meteorologist Siobhán Ryan said despite the weather warning for Sunday, tomorrow looks like it will be "lovely day".

"So, it's not all bad news ... There are a few sharp showers out there now this evening, but the sun is out for a lot of the country, and tomorrow Saturday looks like it’s going to bring lots of sunshine in across the country too, so a lovely day for getting out and about..."

Speaking on RTÉ’s Drivetime, she said the weather will deteriorate during the nighttime hours and Sunday will stay quite showery for the day.

"So wet and windy for the overnight hours and into the morning and early afternoon, so accumulative wind and rain warning out for a lot of the country with the exception of the midlands and east..."

Ms Ryan said the wind and rain warning will lapse at 3pm and will be replaced by "solely a wind warning from Galway up to Donegal".