It was indeed a dry January across the country, according to Met Éireann.
Most places recorded rainfall totals for the month, which were well down on the average for January – traditionally one of the driest months of the year.
The driest place in the country was Dublin Airport which recorded just 26.8mm of rain for the month, or 42 per cent of the long-term average (62.6mm.)
Mullingar's total for the month of 41.3mm was 44 per cent of its long-term average of 92.5mm. Johnstown Castle in Co Wexford recorded 43.5mm of rainfall or 42 per cent of its long-term average for January of 103.4mm.
January 2019 was a month of two halves. The first half was extraordinarily mild for the time of year. The highest temperature for the month was a balmy 13.3 degrees recorded at Finner Camp in Co Donegal on January 7th.
The last 10 days of the month showed a change to more seasonal conditions with a biting easterly wind bringing a monthly low of -5.8 degrees to Dublin Airport on January 31st.
Temperatures were above normal everywhere and it was the warmest January in most places since 2012. It would have been among the warmest on record if the mild weather of the first three weeks of the month continued.
Nevertheless Valentia Observatory in Co Kerry, Shannon Airport and Cork Airport were among the weather stations which recorded average temperatures of almost a degree above normal.
It was also duller than normal for the month but that was chiefly down to the blanket of cloud over the country in the early days of the month which kept temperatures mild for the time of year.
