Knock Airport the wettest place in Mayo in July

A RECORD number of visitors are expected to have flown into Ireland West Airport Knock in July but they would likely have been all soaked leaving the plane as the airport was also the wettest place in Mayo last month.

More rain was recorded to have fallen across Mayo in July than in any of the previous six months of 2023 with Knock Airport statistically the wettest place in the county.

The torrential rain which has fallen in Mayo over the last number of weeks was reflected in the data recorded at the four Met Éireann weather stations across the county. All of the stations recorded rainfall well above the long-term average for July.

As of July 30, 201.5mm of rain fell at the weather station at Knock Airport which has a long term average of 95.7mm. In June just 83.3mm of rain fell at the east Mayo station and the next highest amount of rainfall for the year was in March with 163.7mm.

The next wettest place in Mayo was at the Newport Furnace weather station which recorded a rainfall of 201.2mm. The station has a long term average of 100.9mm of rainfall for July.

In Claremorris the weather station recorded a rainfall of 168.3mm while Belmullet was statistically the driest place with a mere 144.7mm falling.

Anglers delight

WHILE the July weather was a washout for most people, it was a Godsend for anglers who will be attending this week's World Cup Trout Fly Championship on Lough Mask. It is expected that up to 400 anglers will take to the water for the four heat days of the competition which starts on Wednesday.

Ronan Cusack, who has fished the lake all his life, said that the wet conditions means that the trout will come to the surface to feed.

“Holiday weather is the last thing we want because trout won't come up to the sunshine so this damp and wet weather is ideal. The additional water in the lake is helping because it has dropped the temperature of the water and encourages the trout to feed more. We are probably the only people looking for bad weather,” he joked.