Parts of Dublin received 2½ times their normal rainfall in February, Met Éireann’s analysis of last month’s deluge shows.
Rain at Dublin Airport was 255 per cent of the average expected for the month, which was its wettest on record, while Phoenix Park got 250 per cent of its average, its second-highest ever for February.
Met Éireann’s weather station at Dunsany, Co Meath showed the third-highest rainfall, at 236 per cent of average.
More than half the weather stations countrywide recorded above-average rainfall but nationally, the figure worked out at 20 per cent above average as most of the heavy rain was concentrated along the east coast.
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That was countered by significantly drier than usual weather in some parts of the country, such as Mayo, Donegal and Sligo, that received between two-thirds and three-quarters their normal February rains.
They did not escape the downpours completely. February 5th-6th and 11-13th were the wettest periods in the month and on February 12th, the Claremorris weather station in Co Mayo recorded the country’s highest rainfall, with a third of the area’s monthly rain falling in one day.
The mixed experiences across the country mean that, despite the at-times extraordinary rain in the east, February 2026 was only the 19th wettest February on record overall.
It was quite a mild month, with the national mean temperature – averaging day and night – at 7.21 degrees.
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That is 1.21 degrees above the average recorded over the last 30 years, and 2.08 degrees above the average in the previous 30 years, indicating long-term warming.
However, it was still only the 13th-mildest February on record.
Unsurprisingly, sunshine was in shorter supply than usual in most places and there was a marked difference between the eastern and western halves of the country, with stations in Belmullet and Valentia recording the most hours and Dublin Airport the least.
