Laois woman signs off from Met Éireann top job after hectic years of weather

Laois native and popular RTÉ weather forecaster Evelyn Cusack is steping down from the top job in Irish weather forecasting post in Ireland at Met Éireann.

The Clonaslee woman was promoted to Head of Forecasting in 2017, when she signed off from TV duties. She took over from Gerry Fleming. 

The years since being promoted have been hectic for Ms Cusack, who hails from Chapel St in the Slieve Blooms village. She family move subsequently to Dublin area with her family.

One of the first big weather events under her watch took place in her home village and in nearby Mountmellick which was hit by a flash flood that devastated Mountmellick in November 2017.

Ms Cusack, who first appeared on RTÉ’s Six One News in October 1988, has played a key role the National Emergency Co-Ordination Group preparations and responses to the  'Beast from the East' and Storm Emma and Storm Ophelia.

Speaking on her retirement she told RTÉ: "I had my annus horribilis of weather," - using a phrase made famous by Britain's Queen Elizabeth II.

Ms Cusack said it began with Storm Ophelia and was followed months later by Storm Emma and the Beast from the East.

"So, then I was looking forward to a nice summer and we did get a nice summer," she said.

In fact, she said, it was so nice there was a drought.

"And then Bray started to go on fire, and we were in the NECG (National Emergency Coordination Group) again because there was a water shortage".

As if that wasn't enough, there was a status yellow warning the following September for the National Ploughing Championships. 

"I looked and thought oh, around 80-90km/h winds, a huge, tented village and 100,000 people."

She recommended that the event be cancelled, which was a major decision to take for such a largescale event.

"It was a huge deal then ... it seemed like an enormous thing to do. I mean, I closed it down," she told RTÉ.

She remembers it being very calm that morning at 6am, making her decision look premature.

"But then, thankfully, just professionally for me, the winds whipped up and everything was flattened."

She retires today just as Met Éireann launches a new element to its weather app giving ten-day forecasts for mountains and hills.

She became Ireland’s Favourite Weather Forecaster at the TV Now Awards in 2009, the first time an RTÉ weather presenter won the award.