The cold snap which gripped much of the country yesterday will give way to a milder but unsettled spell in the coming days, according to Met Eireann.
A Eireann spokeswoman said the Siberian winds would be replaced by warmer Atlantic ones, with sleet and snow changing to heavy rain in all areas. Snow should have cleared by lunch-time today, she said. It will become noticeably milder, with temperatures rising several degrees to vary between 6 C and 12C today.
The spokeswoman also said hopes of a white Christmas might have died with the passing of the icy spell, and it would most likely stay mild until December 25th. "The suggestions are that we will be affected by more Atlantic temperatures over the coming week, although anything can happen between now and Christmas Day," she added.
Because of yesterday's high winds, all Stena Line sailings were cancelled. A spokesman said they would not be operational until there was an improvement in the weather. Passengers can contact (01) 204-7777 or 053-33115.
Yesterday's Irish Ferries sailings were also disrupted. The Isle of Innishfree, sailing from Pembroke to Rosslare, was unable to dock until after 5 p.m., 22 hours later than expected.
A 26-year-old pregnant woman had to be airlifted from the ferry at 10 a.m. after she began experiencing medical difficulties. She was attended on board by two nurses and taken by an Air Corps helicopter to Wexford Hospital. Her condition was yesterday described as "stable".
It is believed the woman, who is originally from Wales, is expecting twins.
Irish Ferries passengers are being asked to contact 053-33158 and (01) 855-2296 for information on today's sailings.
A spokesman for Dublin Airport said flights from Paris were experiencing delays of up to an hour yesterday because of bad weather in France. London-Dublin flights were experiencing delays of only 10 minutes despite poor weather conditions in London. All other flights were running on schedule.