Met Éireann has issued a hot weather warning with temperatures expected to reach 28 degrees in some parts of the State on Thursday.
The weather warning is in place for six counties - Mayo, Galway, Clare, Limerick, Kerry and Cork - and applies to the period between 1pm and 7pm.
The forecaster said that during that time the weather will feel extremely hot and the sunburn index will be very high for Ireland as the sun is at its strongest around the summer solstice.
El infierno is coming. pic.twitter.com/j0iGEYF0ge
— Silvia Laplana (@slaplana_tve) June 24, 2019
Ireland will get the tail end of a heatwave known as the "Saharan bubble" which is dragging hot desert air across Europe at present.
Record temperatures of 45 degrees are expected in parts of France on Thursday while one respected Spanish forecaster Siliva Laplana tweeted "El infierno (hell) is coming".
It will not be quite as hot in Ireland, but temperatures will still be well above the norm on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
Friday will also be a hot day with highs of 27 degrees. It will be between 20 and 25 degrees on Saturday. After a hiatus to more normal conditions on Sunday and Monday, it looks like temperatures should rise again on Tuesday with the forecast for summer weather to continue through the week.
The hottest weather this week will be experienced in the west of Ireland, but it will reverse next week with hot weather expected along the eastern seaboard.
Though it will be mostly dry there is a chance of thundery showers on Friday in western areas with scattered showers expected on Sunday and Monday across the country.
Clare County Fire and Rescue Service appealed to landowners and members of the public to refrain from any outside burning during the warm weather. It said fires could spread in hot conditions and jeopardise the safety of dwellings, forestry and families living in rural areas.
“We would like to remind landowners that it is an offence under the Wildlife Act to burn growing vegetation between March 1st and August 31st in any year, on any land not then cultivated,” said Clare’s chief fire officer Adrian Kelly.
“The sad fact is that if this simple rule was adhered to, many costly and dangerous wildfires that occur across Clare each year would be avoided.”
