Popular Irish names included in list of new storms

Seán, Pól and Méabh are just three of the Irish names which have made it onto the list of storm names for the 2021-22 storm season.

The full list was released this morning (Wednesday) and other popular names to make the cut include Jack, Ruby and Barra, which is the Irish derivative of Finbarr.

The list was compiled by Met Éireann, along with the Met Office and KNMI - the national weather services of the UK and Netherlands. Met Éireann and the Met Office have been working together on the Storm Names partnership since 2014, in an effort to help raise awareness of the potential impacts of severe weather, and they were joined by KMNI in 2019.

In a nod to the involvement of Netherlands-based KMNI, Dutch names which have made the list include Tineke and Willemien, while popular English names to make the list include Dudley, Carrie and Gladys.

Similar to previous years, each weather service has contributed names reflective of their nation and culture, mainly suggested by members of the public. In a recent public vote Diarmuid was put to a vote along with Duncan, Dudley and Dafydd… and Dudley was the winner, perhaps reflective of the magic of Harry Potter!

Met Éireann’s Head of Forecasting, Evelyn Cusack said the weather service is "now preparing for the autumn and winter months ahead" by releasing a list of storm names.

She added that last winter was "relatively quiet" with Met Éireann only naming one storm, storm Aiden at Halloween. “Once again Met Éireann will continue to work with our national weather service colleagues in the UK and Netherlands, by continuing to provide a clear and consistent message to the public and encouraging people to take action to prevent harm to themselves or to their properties at times of severe weather.”

Ms. Cusack also spoke about her delight at the launch this month of the new audio weather forecasts where people can listen to the latest forecasts delivered by the team of Met Éireann forecasters.

This is the seventh year of Met Éireann naming storms with their European partners, and Will Lang, Head of the National Severe Weather Warning Service at the Met Office, said "we look forward to continuing to work together with them to raise awareness around the impacts of severe weather in order to help keep people from all nations safe."

While referring to the "severe weather that has been witnessed across Europe and globally in recent months" Mr. Lang assured members of the public that the national weather forecast service, along with its partners, " work to use any tool at our disposal to ensure the public is informed of potential risks, and naming storms is just one way we do that.”

Gerard van der Steenhoven, Director General at KNMI, said storms are "not confined to national borders, it makes a lot of sense to given common names to such extreme weather events. We gladly continue our collaboration with the UK Met Office and Met Éireann on storm forecasting. It is a great privilege and advantage to work in close co-operation with our colleagues from Ireland and the UK in the communication about storms. All people exposed to such impeding extreme weather events will benefit.”