Record high winds from Storm Eowyn battered Ireland and Northern Ireland on Friday, leaving almost one-third of Irish homes and businesses without power and forcing cancellation of hundreds of flights and the closure of schools and public transport.

The Weather and Radar team battled Storm Eowyn's 118mph gusts while trying to measure wind speeds on the coast of County Clare, Ireland.

The storm had knocked out power to more than half a million utility customers by early Friday as it moved across Ireland.