Ireland is battening down the hatches as it prepares for the arrival of Hurricane Ophelia early Monday morning.
Ophelia, the strongest-ever hurricane to hit the eastern Atlantic Ocean, is being fueled by warmer than usual weather patterns.
The storm, which reached Category 3 hurricane status on Saturday, is currently sustaining maximum winds of up to 90 miles per hour. Although Ophelia will likely downgrade to a post-Tropical Storm by Monday, it is also expected with "generally high confidence" to make landfall in southern Ireland early in the day, according to a post by Met Eireann, the Irish Meteorological Service.
The National Hurricane Center in Miami, which is tracking the storm, notes that southern Ireland can expect to see gale force winds early Monday followed by hurricane-force winds in the afternoon. The winds are then expected to "spread inland across the country into Monday night." The storm will likely also produce two to three inches of rainfall, dangerous storm surges and coastal flooding.
At least one airline is canceling all flights in and out of Ireland on Monday.
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, also known as KLM, announced on its website that passengers with flights "to, from or via Dublin (DUB) and Belfast (BHD) on 16 October 2017," will be offered rebooking or refund options.
The Irish Aviation Authority, as well as airports throughout the country, are similarly warning passengers whose travel plans include Ireland to confirm flight schedules before heading to the airport.
"Storm Ophelia continues to track towards Ireland and we expect to see the initial effects from 0300hrs tomorrow, Monday 16th October," posted the Irish Aviation Authority in a warning on its website.
"Due to the adverse weather effects forecasted to occur as a result of Storm Ophelia, please be advised that there maybe disruptions to flight operations for aircraft landing and departing at all Irish airports on Monday 16th October. Passengers intending to fly should check their airline's website or contact their airline directly for the latest information."
Aer Lingus, Ireland's national carrier has announced that it has canceled more than 50 flights, according to the Independent.ie.
"While we are planning to operate the majority of our schedule we have had to cancel a number of flights as a result of the anticipated operating conditions," an airline spokesperson told Indepdenent.ie. "We continue to monitor the situation closely and will update the website and contact guests, via SMS, as soon as any new information becomes available."
The Independent.ie also reports that Ryanair tweeted a notice on Sunday afternoon that "Flights are operating as normal."
As of press time, however, that tweet appears to have been deleted and no further updates have been provided. Customers have taken to Twitter to ask the airline if it plans to cancel any flights.
Ryanair, of course, has received much heat recently for not keeping customers notified after it canceled tens of thousands of flights due to a pilot scheduling error.
Ireland has seen a boom in tourism this year, especially in travelers from North America, which grew 23 percent during the first five months of the year as compared to the previous year.
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