Northern Ireland continued to bask in warm April sunshine on Wednesday.
Temperatures are forecast to reach 18°C in parts this week as the sun continues to shine across the country and people flocked to Belfast City Hall on Wednesday to make the most of the fine spring weather.
According to the Met Office, Thursday is set to another dry and sunny day across Northern Ireland with highs of 17°C.
The good news is that the fine weather is set to stay around for another while with high pressure brining mostly dry, settled conditions over the coming weekend with plenty of sunshine.
But the good weather also comes with warnings of an “extreme” wildfire risk following a series of blazes in recent days. The Met Office has issued an amber warning for fire severity across parts of the UK including Northern Ireland.
Met Office spokeswoman Nicola Maxey said the risk is due to “dry weather which has been ongoing for a while now”.
“We have got dry, warm weather with some fairly strong winds. High pressure is dominating our weather at the moment, which is caused by the heat that we have been seeing,” she said.
“Early in the winter we also had a very wet period which produced a lot of plant growth. This exacerbates the risk with fuel for the fire.”
It comes as Northern Ireland saw an above average amount of sunshine in March at 13%. Northern Ireland also experienced its ninth driest March on record, based on Met Office data for rainfall.
Here's what we can expect over the coming days:
Thursday:
Another dry, sunny day with any early mist patches quickly dispersing. A chilly start then feeling warm inland, but cooler towards the east coast. Maximum temperature 17°C.
Outlook for Friday to Sunday:
High pressure will maintain mostly dry, settled weather with plenty of sunshine. There may be some cloud and a few light showers at first on Friday.
UK long range weather forecast: Monday 7 April - Wednesday 16 April
High pressure should prevail for most of the outlook period, maintaining largely settled conditions for much of the time. This should result in lengthy spells of dry and bright weather. It will be breezy at times, especially in the southwest at first.
Daytime temperatures will depend on the wind direction and cloud amounts, but most places will be warm for most of the period, and very warm days most likely will be further inland. Overnight frosts are possible on clear nights where winds fall light.
There is also the chance of some areas of low cloud or fog, notably around the east coast. Towards the middle of April, the weather may turn more unsettled as rain or showers try to push in from the west.
Belfast Live daily newsletter Solus embed
For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here and sign up to our daily newsletter here.
English (United States) ·