Members of the public who are planning to swim in the sea this weekend amid unseasonably high temperatures are urged to exercise caution.
A status yellow high temperature warning for the entire country has been in place since Thursday, and will lapse at 8am on Saturday.
Met Eireann is forecasting sunny spells and some scattered showers on Saturday, with highest temperatures between 21 and 26 degrees
Very warm and humid conditions will continue on Sunday before becoming cooler from Monday onwards, with temperatures falling to between 15 and 19 degrees.
#Weekend Weather Update
Warm or very warm this weekend but with the increasing likelihood of some thundery spells of rain ☀️🥵⛈️🌦️
Temperatures falling back next week as a change in airmass sets in 🌡️📉
Find more here ⬇️https://t.co/yEsIuCkWlq pic.twitter.com/f1VNP4uMNj— Met Éireann (@MetEireann) September 8, 2023
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Ahead of the warm spell this weekend, Joanne Walsh, chief executive of Water Safety Ireland, said drownings often happen "quickly and silently" with males representing the vast majority of deaths in Irish waters.
“It is beautiful weather. We are having an unusual September and we have to enjoy it. But we have got to think water safety at all times," she told RTÉ's Morning Ireland.
Ms Walsh urged people to go to a lifeguarded waterway if they want to swim and cool down this weekend.
She said: "If there is a yellow and a red flag up there will be two flags – swim between those two flags. That means the lifeguard who is on duty that day has risk assessed the area and has considered it safe to swim there.
"If you do see a red flag do not swim. That means the lifeguard considers it unsafe to swim. So please heed the advice of our lifeguards. They know what they are talking about. Heed our heroes."
Ms Walsh said swimmers should only go in the water in an area where there is a lifebuoy nearby so that someone can gain access to help if required.
She urged parents to avoid giving inflatable toys to their children as they can be "a real threat to life".
"If a child is on an inflatable toy the child and the inflatable toy can be taken miles out just by a light breeze. Indeed, in lakes as well there still can be the presence and the contribution of the wind. So please, no inflatable toys."
On average over the last 10 years Ireland has recorded around 105 drownings every year, Ms Walsh said. The majority of drownings happen in males, while approximately 60 per cent of drowning incidents happen inland. Alcohol is a factor in 30 per cent of drownings.
Ms Walsh added: "On average nine people drown in Ireland every month, and while one drowning is one too many, this number would be considerably higher if it wasn’t for the lifeguards that watch over our waterways. This weekend I encourage parents and guardians to bring children to lifeguarded waterways."
Two people have lost their lives in Irish waters this week. On Tuesday a man in his 80s died after taking ill in the water at Curracloe Beach, Co Wexford. He was pronounced dead at the scene. A file is being prepared for the coroner.
Also on Tuesday, eight-year-old Emili Roman (7) died after getting into difficulty at Fountainstown Beach in Co Cork.
