Revealed: Met Éireann announces storm names for 2024/2025 season

More than 500 suggestions had been made by primary school children across Ireland.

The full list of storm names are: Ashley, Bert, Conall, Darragh, Éowyn, Floris, Gerben, Hugo, Izzy, James, Kayleigh, Lewis, Mavis, Naoise, Otje, Poppy, Rafi, Sayuri, Tilly, Vivienne, and Wren.

The choices for C, D, H, I, N, P and V were made by Met Éireann.

In order to prevent a clash with the US National Hurricane Center, there are no named storms for the letters Q, U, X, Y or Z.

Ireland saw 13 to 14 severe storms in 2023/24, 11 of which were named as part of the system.

Named storms in the most recent season of 2023/2024 included Storm Kathleen, Storm Babet and Storm Fergus.

Storms are given names to increase public preparedness for extreme weather.

They are only named when they could cause 'medium or high' impacts in any of the three partner countries.

When a storm is forecast, the national weather service that expects the biggest impact from the severe weather to hit its region or is likely to be first affected by it, names the storm.

Storm-naming happens in conjunction with orange/red weather warnings, which could be for wind, rain or snow or a combination of these conditions. 

Those warnings are, in turn, issued based on a combination of numerical thresholds and the potential impacts foreseen.

Since 2015, Met Éireann and the UK Met Office have been working together on the naming programme and were joined by the Netherland’s KNMI in 2019.

The head of the forecasting division in Met Éireann, Eoin Sherlock, explained how the naming of storms benefits the public.

“Our key priority is to help protect life and property from extreme weather and ensure the safety of our communities. Year after year, storm-naming proves effective for that. 

Naming each storm increases the level of public safety and preparedness as people are more likely to remember and respond to warnings when storms are named.

Mr Sherlock noted Ireland — and the world — is experiencing the effects of severe weather events more frequently and more intensely as a result of climate change.

He added: "Now more than ever, it is crucial for younger generations to understand these risks so that they can safeguard their future by driving societal change, and their involvement in the names selection this year is proof of Met Éireann’s commitment to support their weather and climate awareness."

This was backed up by a study published in May, which found downpours in the storms which battered Ireland last autumn and winter were made about 20% heavier by climate change.

It said the kind of intense storm rainfall seen in 2023/2024 had become 10 times more likely.

Where it would have occurred about once every 50 years in the pre-industrial period, in today’s world, similarly intense storm rainfall was expected to occur about every five years.

Mr Sherlock urged the public to "basically, be winter ready," when it comes to public safety.