People have been making the most of the sunshine, with many flocking to the north coast to soak up every bit of the sun.
Ice cream sellers across the region have been working hard to keep up with demand, with Portstewart’s popular Morelli’s ice cream parlour saying sales have seen a significant boost in recent days.
News Catch Up – Monday 19 May
Manager Amy Platt said the sunny weather has had a positive impact on the business, with “many happy faces” seen walking and working along the promenade.
“It’s been such a long stretch of warm weather, and our sales have definitely gone up, especially for ice cream,” she said.
“While sit-in customers aren’t as busy, the great weather means lots of takeaway ice cream sales and people love being out on the promenade enjoying themselves.
“The atmosphere is lovely, everybody is more relaxed, happy, and patient. It’s a real mood booster.”
Soaking up the sun at Helen’s Bay. Photo: Declan Roughan / Press Eye
Amy said that although the store plans its stock a week in advance and is seeing strong sales, the sunny May weather also presents challenges, particularly with staffing.
“Great weather makes a huge difference to us as a business. People love to get ice cream and be out enjoying themselves at times like this.
“May is always tough for staffing, with many part-timers off doing A-levels and GCSEs, so it’s mainly full-timers and myself managing the high demand.
Tilly and Eimer Short
“We just ask customers for patience as we navigate with limited staff, but we are working hard as always to supply the north west with their favourite ice cream.”
She added: “We plan a week ahead to stay on top of orders. Some suppliers have struggled to meet demand, which means occasional shortages of certain flavours. But overall, business has been very successful.”
A Met Office spokesperson told the Belfast Telegraph that clouds or rain are unlikely during this working week.
They added: “Fine, dry and settled is the name of the game for Northern Ireland over the next few days. It’s not until next weekend that we should start to see clouds and outbreaks of rain begin to show their hand.”
Temperatures are expected to stay in the high teens to low 20s, sitting “comfortably around 22–23C” throughout the week, with a “slight dip” towards the weekend.
Soaking up the sun at Helen’s Bay. Photo: Declan Roughan / Press Eye
The meteorologist said the sunny spell is unusual for this time of year, adding that while it’s not officially classified as a heatwave, temperatures are higher than normal for spring.
“We need to hit three consecutive days with temperatures exceeding 25°C in Northern Ireland to meet the Met Office’s heatwave criteria. We’ve come close but haven’t quite reached that mark. This threshold applies across NI, Scotland, parts of England, and Wales,” they said.
“It’s not typical. Spring has been exceptionally dry and sunny so far, and we expect this pattern to continue throughout the week.”
The Met Office spokesperson also warned people to take care in the sun and regularly apply suncream, as UV levels are currently moderate to high, increasing the risk of sunburn.
