The cold spell will eventually end.

The colder-than-usual weather is set to come to an end with 'largely settled conditions' on the horizon.

The country experienced a winter blast over the weekend with snow and ice sweeping the country.

This morning (Tuesday, January, 7), there were two Status Yellow warnings in place for both snow and ice and low temperatures for the whole country, resulting in school closures, cancelled hospital appointments and travel chaos.

That has since been upgraded to a Status Orange warning for most of the country.

However, Carlow Weather's Alan O'Reilly confirmed that the weather is set to thaw but warned that it would be the weekend before any real change is felt for many parts of the country.

Met Éireann forecasts that as of Monday, January 13, the current indications predict 'largely settled conditions'.

The service said:

"High pressure is indicated to be nearby with lower than average precipitation amounts expected and there is signal for temperatures to be slightly higher than average for mid-January.

"Given the time of year, frost and fog may also develop under these conditions."

The service warned of 'very cold nights with widespread frost, ice and lying snow' as well as 'temperatures that struggle to get above freezing during the day'.

They added that residents should be prepared to face travel disruption with hazardous conditions expected on both the roads and under foot.

Met Éireann's deputy head of forecasting, Liz Coleman said: "Given there has been a lot of snow over the weekend, as well as rain which has now frozen, there will be really dangerous conditions on the road.

"The icy conditions will be particularly impactful for some road users, such as cyclists and motorcyclists, so alternative travel should be considered if possible."

Meanwhile, 17,000 homes and businesses were without power as of 5.15 pm on Monday with crews from Uisce Eireann and ESB Network working tirelessly to restore amenities to those affected.