BREAKING: Laois hit with snow Status Orange #sneachta

Met Éireann has warned of significant snow accumulations in Laois in a new Status Orange Alert.

The forecaster snow/ice warning covers all 12 Leinster counties.

The second highest level weather alert says there will be spells of sleet and snow overnight combined with strong northerly winds. The forecaster warns of "significant accumulations of snow are expected in some areas by morning along with icy conditions".

Met Éireann also outlined the possible impacts as follows.

• Very hazardous road conditions
•  Travel disruption
• Poor Visibility

The warning is valid: from midnight on Thursday to 10 am on Friday morning.

A Status Yellow snow-ice warning is also valid for all of Ireland from 3am Thursday to noon on Friday.

It warns of rain, sleet and snow spreading north across Ireland accompanied by strengthening winds. It says accumulations of snow are expected in many areas along with icy conditions. Sleet and snow will likely transition to rain in southern areas for a time. 

Watch: Snowy, sloshy, slippy - Laois wakes to snow as Portlaoise turns white #sneachta

In its weather forecast Met Éireann says rain, sleet and snow will continue to spread northeastwards to most areas on Thursday with poor visibility and hazardous road conditions in some parts. Afternoon highs of 0 to 3 degrees generally, but significantly milder in southern coastal areas. Northeasterly winds will freshen this afternoon and it will become rather windy for a time this evening.

It says Thursday night will be cold and windy at first with falls of sleet and snow in many areas giving rise to very poor visibility and hazardous road conditions. Met Éireann says the sleet and snow will continue overnight over the eastern half of the country, but it will become drier further west with frost and ice developing under clear breaks. Lowest temperatures of -4 to 0 degrees coldest in the west, with northerly winds gradually easing light to moderate overnight.

Friday will see residual rain, sleet and snow in the east clearing in the morning, giving way to a cold and mostly dry day with sunny spells. Highest temperatures of 4 to 7 degrees in light variable breezes.

Watch: Laois path snowplough hits the road in Portlaoise #sneachta

It will be dry in many areas to begin on Friday night but with cloud gradually thickening from the southwest. Rain in the southwest will spread northeastwards over Munster and parts of Connacht and Leinster overnight, falling as a wintry mix of sleet and snow initially. Lows of -3 to +3 degrees, generally but locally colder in the northeast where snow is lying and skies remain clearest the longest. Light to moderate southeast breezes will be fresher near west and southwest coasts.

The national outlook is for milder weather over the weekend