On This Day (11 August) in Irish Weather History

A timeline of notable weather events and extremes that have taken place in Ireland on August 11th throughout history.

1870: Dublin’s Phoenix Park records a high of 30.5°C, the fifth highest daily maximum in Dublin’s recorded history.

1927: The Electricity Supply Board (ESB) is established to manage the Shannon hydro-electric scheme and take over all existing electrification projects in Ireland.

1946: Phoenix Park records its highest daily rainfall for the date with 27.6mm. The following day, an August 12th rainfall record is broken with 32mm.

1970: Ireland’s newest airstrip opens in Birr, County Offaly. On the same day, the first scheduled jumbo jet flight, a Pan Am Boeing 747 with 311 passengers from the US, lands at Shannon Airport before continuing to London.

1979: The Fastnet Challenge yacht race suffers a disaster when a storm hits the largest-ever fleet of 303 vessels, resulting in 17 fatalities.

1998: Fine Gael warns that many farmers, facing the worst harvesting weather in 20 years, will have no income by Christmas unless the Government intervenes with a support strategy.

1999: The last almost-total solar eclipse of the century occurs. Despite cloud cover spoiling the view in many areas, hundreds in Croke Park, Dublin, watch under clear blue skies.

2005: A World Wildlife Fund (WWF) International study reveals summer temperatures in most European capitals have risen sharply over 30 years. Dublin records one of the smallest increases at 0.7°C.

2018: The lowest air minimum for the month, 1.2°C, is recorded at Mount Dillon, Co Roscommon.

2022: Oak Park in Carlow records a daily high of 30.2°C.

2024: Remnants of ex-Hurricane Bertha bring unusually windy and very wet weather to Ireland.