One of Ireland’s best-known weather forecasters is retiring today.
Evelyn Cusack worked with Met Éireann for 42 years, of which she spent 30 years presenting weather reports on RTÉ.
She says the weather forecast has “changed utterly and for the better” and predicts that artificial intelligence (AI) will be the next weather revolution.
After studying math and physics at UCD, following in the footsteps of her brother and sister, Evelyn got a job at Met Éireann in 1981, reports RTE.
She said when she went in there was no satellite or internet.
“We used to get charts on electrostatic paper, and it would take half an hour for a few charts to come in,” she said, reports RTE.
In 1988, Evelyn started presenting the weather forecast on RTÉ and continued to do so for 30 years.
Ms Cusack said it started 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, reports RTE.
In fact, she said, it was so beautiful that 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,” reports RTE.
She is retiring today as Met Éireann launches a new feature of its weather app, offering a ten-day forecast for mountains and hills.
Ms Cusack said she was looking forward to seeing Met Éireann involved in the “next weather revolution” of AI.
“Met Éireann is putting in a professorship in a university which will be announced shortly, and AI development is to be part of that. I’m really grateful to have been working this long and to feel so well and healthy,” reports RTE.
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