Here is the latest on Ireland's cold snap:
- A status-orange warning for low temperatures and ice is now in place for most counties from 8pm on Tuesday until 10am on Wednesday. A similar warning will be in place from 6pm on Wednesday until 11am on Thursday;
- Met Éireann says night-time temperatures may drop to -10 degrees in some places this week;
- More than 6,500 premises remain without electricity, with counties Kerry, Limerick and Tipperary worst hit;
- Some 17,000 premises are waiting for supply to resume;
- Many schools and childcare facilities remain closed, particularly in counties Kilkenny, Cork, Tipperary and Wicklow.
An orange low temperature and ice warning is currently in place for the majority of counties. Dublin, Wexford and Louth are still under a yellow low temperature and ice warning.
The warning stays in place until 10am on Wednesday morning and then at 6pm another orange warning comes into place for the entire country.
An Post says it expects its services to be impacted in some areas as a result of the inclement weather over the next few days.
Head of Corporate Communications, Anna McHugh, says they reopened more than 30 post offices on Tuesday.
Stay safe, informed & prepared by understanding the weather warning meaning for your area & take advice from your local authorities during the weather events🥶
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People are being urged to keep their guard up ahead of a low temparature warning issued for most counties on Tuesday and Wednesday night.
Snow and sub-zero conditions have already caused hazardous driving conditions and cut power and water to thousands of homes, with crews from various agencies working to help stranded communities.
The worst-hit counties are Tipperary, Limerick, Cork and Kerry, where authorities have deployed additional supports to clear snow before sub-zero temperatures hit again.
Temperatures are expected to plummet to as low as -8 degrees while a status-orange low temperature and ice warning was announced for almost all of the Republic.
Met Éireann said the alert applies between 8pm on Tuesday and 10am on Wednesday, in all counties except for Donegal, Dublin, Louth and Wexford.
This will be followed by a further warning for every county except for Donegal between 6pm on Wednesday and 11am on Thursday.
It means there will be extremely cold nights with widespread frost, ice and lying snow.
The measure comes on top of a status-yellow low temperature and ice warning, applying to the entire country until 6am on Friday.
The ESB said 6,500 of its customers were without power on Tuesday afternoon while thousands were without access to water.
Temperatures are expected to "struggle" to get above freezing during the day with transport disruption and hazardous travelling conditions.
Met Éireann forecaster Andrew Doran-Sherlock said it will be “bitterly cold” overnight into Wednesday, adding that a few wintry showers will affect parts of the north and west.
The lowest temperatures are expected to be -8 to -3 generally, although it could dip even lower in some regions, with a severe frost and icy stretches.
The agency is also warning of the risk of freezing fog developing over the coming days.
Temperatures are predicted to increase through Thursday night and Friday as rain, sleet and snow moves north-eastwards over the country, becoming milder for the weekend.
The cold snap had seen tens of thousands of people without water and electricity, with crews continue to work to restore access to the services for the remaining affected homes and businesses on Tuesday.
Taoiseach Simon Harris said it is important for people to "keep their guard up" as extremely low temperatures are expected in the days ahead.
Speaking in Naas, Co Kildare at the opening of Craddockstown Special School, Mr Harris said that Ireland was moving from snowy to low temperature conditions and people would face "treacherous" conditions as a result.
"We will experience cold weather, the likes of which we’re not very used to in this country – talking about temperatures dropping to -8 degrees, -10 degrees, and in many ways, it could potentially be a more dangerous period of time, because while snow may not be visible everywhere, footpaths and roads can be extremely dangerous."
He said the number of gritting and salting times a day would be increased from twice to three times a day, and additional supports are being deployed in the worst-hit areas, such as Kerry, Cork, Limerick, and Tipperary.
He said: "It’s really important that people keep their guard up, because footpaths, roads and the likes can be extremely treacherous in the area."
Keith Leonard, director of the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management, asked people to keep an eye out for vulnerable neighbours during the cold spell.
"You may know someone who is elderly or who has mobility issues and lives nearby – this would be a good time to check in on them and make sure they are ok and have everything they need," Mr Leonard said.
"We are lucky that we have a strong community spirit out there and I’d ask people to continue to check on elderly, vulnerable and isolated neighbours where possible.
"As the extremely cold weather continues, we will continue to see hazardous travel conditions for much of the week. Given the prevalence of extremely low temperatures throughout the country over the next few days, road and path surfaces will present a hazard to drivers, cyclists and pedestrians. Even where there has been no snow, icy conditions will prevail and surfaces may look deceptively safe.
"Local Authority teams are continuing to work hard treating roads, but even where roads have been salted, people should slow down, drive with caution and allow extra time for their journey. Drivers travelling longer journeys should be aware of conditions right along their route, as conditions are differing widely across different parts of the country."
