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Power Cuts in Ireland: ESB Networks, PowerCheck and What to Do

ESB Networks repairs every power cut in the Republic of Ireland, whichever supplier you pay. Its PowerCheck map shows current faults, and its emergency line is 1800 372 999.

If you see a fallen power line, do not touch it or go near it and call 112 or 999.

Live national count
None
None we can republish
Network operators listed
1
Across 4 provinces
Weather warnings
0
Met Éireann
Outage time per customer (2025)
2 hr 12 min
1.47 interruptions per customer

Ireland power cuts by province

LeinsterMunsterConnachtUlster (Republic of Ireland counties)LeinsterMunsterConnachtUlster (Republic of Ireland counties)
Ireland has 4 provinces, shown over a 800 by 900 map.

Boundaries: © Tailte Éireann, CC BY 4.0.

No open live feed covers Ireland, so the map isn't shaded by outages. Pick your province to see who to contact.

Choose your province

Who to contact in Ireland

Report and track a power cut with the company that repairs your local network

Ireland network operators, PowerCheck map links and phone numbers
Network operatorOfficial PowerCheck mapReport by phone
ESB NetworksOpen ↗1800 372 999

One network, many suppliers

Ireland's setup is simpler than most. ESB Networks is the only company that owns and repairs the distribution network, serving about 2.5 million customers. Whichever supplier you pay, the fault goes to the same place.

The confusing part is the name. People say "ESB" for the network, but Electric Ireland is a separate supplier brand. Calling your supplier about a power cut only delays things, because it can't send a crew. Save 1800 372 999 and you'll reach the right people from any county.

Using PowerCheck

PowerCheck is ESB Networks' own service map. It shows current faults and planned work, and you can search your own address. It drew 6.5 million unique visitors in 2025, which gives you a sense of how much people rely on it during storms.

ESB Networks doesn't publish an open data feed or a running national count, so this site can't show a live total for Ireland. Numbers usually appear only in its press statements during major storms. PowerCheck stops at the border too: the six Northern Ireland counties use NIE Networks and its own map.

Why Atlantic storms hit Ireland so hard

Ireland's network has six times as many overhead lines as underground ones, so strong winds reach it easily. That's why the country's largest power cuts all trace back to named storms.

Storm Éowyn in January 2025 broke every record, with about 768,000 customers out at the peak. Almost 70% were reconnected within 72 hours and 90% within a week. Before that, Storm Darragh in December 2024 left about 395,000 off supply, and Storm Ophelia in 2017 reached 385,000.

Different storms hit different places, so your province's history matters. Storm Isha in 2024 was worst in Donegal, Sligo, Leitrim, Mayo, Cavan, Longford and Roscommon. Storm Ellen in 2020 hit southern, western and midland counties, including about 40,000 customers in Cork. Storm Emma in 2018, the Beast from the East, mainly affected the east and greater Dublin.

What the reliability figures leave out

ESB Networks reports 131.72 minutes lost and 1.473 interruptions per customer for 2025. These are unplanned outages only, and storm days are excluded, so Storm Éowyn isn't in that number. They show everyday performance and not what happens in a bad winter, which is worth remembering if you depend on electricity for medical equipment or heating.

Weather warnings

Current warnings issued by Met Éireann

Met Éireann lists no active warnings for this area.

Source: Met Éireann

Ireland power cut news

How Ireland's grid works

ESB Networks owns and operates the distribution network and is the only company that repairs power cuts, whichever supplier a customer uses; it also owns and maintains the high-voltage transmission network. EirGrid operates the transmission system, and the all-island Single Electricity Market with Northern Ireland has been the wholesale market since 2018, overseen by the SEM Committee of the CRU and the Northern Ireland Utility Regulator. Interconnectors are the East West Interconnector and Greenlink to Wales (500 MW each) and Moyle from Northern Ireland to Scotland (500 MW); the 700 MW Celtic Interconnector to France is expected in Q4 2028. In 2024, natural gas produced 48.6% of domestic electricity and wind 37.3%, and net imports supplied a further 14.0% of gross electricity supply. The network has a 6:1 ratio of overhead to underground lines, which ESB Networks says is much higher than typical continental European utilities and leaves it exposed to trees and storms.

About the reliability figure: Unplanned outages only, storm days excluded, outages of 3 minutes or more. These are the CRU-incentivised CML and CI measures. CI is published per 100 customers (147.3), shown here per customer. Source: ESB Networks, Distribution Annual Performance Report 2025 (issued August 2026).

Regulator: Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU).

Where Ireland's electricity came from, 2024

Share of Ireland electricity generation by source, 2024
Gas48.6%
Wind37.3%
Solar3.5%
Hydro2.5%
Coal2%
Oil1.9%
Biomass1.6%
RenewableWaste1.1%
NonRenewableWaste0.9%
LandfillGas0.3%
Biogas0.2%

Source: SEAI, Energy in Ireland 2025 (December 2025), Table 4.3

Largest power cuts in Ireland

Figures are as reported by the sources cited; some count peak customers and others the total affected over the event

  1. Storm Éowyn

    24 January 2025

    768,000 customers affected

    The largest storm ESB Networks has recorded: over 10,000 faults and about 768,000 customers out at the peak, roughly one third of all properties. Almost 70% were reconnected within 72 hours and 90% within a week, with the last customers restored on 11 February, 18 days later. About 4,500 poles needed replacing, and the Castlebar, Longford and Ballina network areas each had more than 80% of customers off supply.

    Sources: ESB Networks, Storm Éowyn Review (October 2025); ESB Networks, update on power restoration (11 February 2025); ESB Networks, Distribution Annual Performance Report 2025 (issued August 2026)

  2. Storm Darragh

    6 December 2024

    395,000 customers affected

    About 395,000 homes, farms and businesses were off supply at the peak, with the North West, Midlands and South East among the hardest hit. ESB Networks' later review gives 398,000 and says restoration took 7 days. Storm Éowyn followed only seven weeks later.

    Sources: ESB Networks, update on Storm Darragh (8 December 2024); ESB Networks, Storm Éowyn Review (October 2025)

  3. Storm Ophelia

    16 October 2017

    385,000 customers affected

    ESB Networks puts the peak at 385,000 customers. Its Storm Éowyn review lists 396,000 customer outages for the same storm.

    Sources: ESB Networks, update on Storm Darragh (8 December 2024); ESB Networks, Storm Éowyn Review (October 2025)

  4. Storm Darwin

    12 February 2014

    260,000 customers affected

    RTÉ reported more than 260,000 customers without power at one point on 12 February 2014. ESB Networks' own figures vary: its Storm Éowyn review shows 342,000 customer outages in one table and 215,000 in another.

    Sources: RTÉ News, Storm Darwin aftermath (16 February 2014); ESB Networks, Storm Éowyn Review (October 2025)

  5. Storm Isha

    21 January 2024

    235,000 customers affected

    Over 235,000 customers were off supply at the peak on the morning of Monday 22 January. Counties Donegal, Sligo, Leitrim, Mayo, Cavan, Longford and Roscommon were worst affected, and about 12,000 were still out on 24 January.

    Source: ESB Networks, update on Storm Isha (24 January 2024)

  6. Storm Ellen

    19 August 2020

    194,000 customers affected

    More than 194,000 homes, farms and businesses were without power on the morning of 20 August, around 40,000 of them in Cork city and county. Southern, western and midland counties were worst affected.

    Source: ESB Networks, crews restoring power to 194,000 after Storm Ellen (20 August 2020)

  7. Storm Ali

    19 September 2018

    140,000 customers affected

    More than 140,000 homes, farms and businesses were without power from over 750 separate faults by mid-morning on 19 September. ESB Networks named Cavan, Sligo, Galway, Thurles, Castlebar, Tralee, Portlaoise, Mullingar and Dundalk among the areas affected.

    Source: ESB Networks, update on Storm Ali (19 September 2018)

  8. Storm Emma (Beast from the East)

    1 March 2018

    117,000 customers affected

    ESB Networks reported 117,000 homes and businesses without power at about 1:30am on 2 March, mainly in the east and the greater Dublin area, with Co Cork also affected. A later ESB Networks statement the same day gives the 1:30am peak as 101,000.

    Sources: ESB Networks, Storm Emma update, 7:20am (2 March 2018); ESB Networks, Storm Emma update, 12:20pm (2 March 2018)

Ireland power cut FAQ

What is the ESB emergency number?

ESB Networks' emergency line is 1800 372 999. Use it to report a power cut or damaged equipment. For a fallen line, ESB Networks' advice is do not touch and do not go near.

Do I call Electric Ireland about a power cut?

No. Electric Ireland, Bord Gáis Energy, SSE Airtricity and Energia are suppliers that bill you. ESB Networks owns and repairs the network for all of them, so faults go to ESB Networks.

Does PowerCheck cover Northern Ireland?

No. PowerCheck covers the Republic of Ireland, including Cavan, Donegal and Monaghan. The other six Ulster counties are in Northern Ireland, where NIE Networks runs the network.

What was the worst storm for power cuts in Ireland?

Storm Éowyn on 24 January 2025 is the largest ESB Networks has recorded, with over 10,000 faults and about 768,000 customers out at the peak, roughly one third of all properties.

Is there a power cut in Ireland right now?

ESB Networks shows current faults and planned work on its PowerCheck map, and you can check your own address there. It does not publish an open data feed or a running national count of customers without power, so numbers usually appear only in ESB Networks press statements during major storms.

Cite this page

You may reuse our derived data under CC BY 4.0 with attribution. Weather warnings are from Met Éireann, under its open data licence, and are not altered.

PowerOutageTracker.com. "Power Cuts in Ireland: ESB Networks, PowerCheck and What to Do." Accessed 3 November 2026. https://poweroutagetracker.com/world/ireland
Sources (24)