Storm terror as tree falls on pregnant woman’s car
Pregnant woman injured as car hit in 100kmh winds
1,400 homes and businesses in Carrick-on-shannon and Leitrim left without power
A PREGNANT woman was injured yesterday when high winds blew a tree on to her car.
The accident happened in Clonliffe Road, Drumcondra, Dublin, shortly before 9am closing off the whole street to traffic.
An ambulance and a fire engine rushed to the scene and a woman was transferred to hospital.
A garda said she was in shock but not seriously injured.
The previous day workmen had dug up the pavement around the base of the tree and were due to continue yesterday. It was surrounded by red barriers, some of which were crushed.
One local said: “They have been digging up the pavement all along Clonliffe Road for water works and boxing in the roots of the trees before re-concreting the path.
“It looks like the base of the tree was weakened and in the high winds it crashed down. There was no concrete on top of the roots to stabilise it.
“I had only passed by a few minutes before so I was lucky.”
Meanwhile, winds battered the country last night leaving thousands without power and wreaking havoc on the roads.
Forceful gusts travelling up to 100kmh accompanied by heavy rainfall hit counties across Ireland as Met Eireann issued a status yellow wind warning until 9pm last night.
A weather advisory remains in place for the entire country until 6pm today with homeowners asked to tie down items like trampolines.
AA Roadwatch has also urged motorists that pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists and high-sided vehicles are most likely to be blown off-course in high winds.
In Galway, gale force winds caused a chimney to collapse at the Old Connacht Laundry Site.
Emergency services attended the scene and closed off St Helen’s Street but nobody is believed to have been injured.
Weather chiefs had warned there would be “unseasonable” windy conditions for counties Kerry, Clare, Donegal, Sligo, Mayo and Galway but updated to a status yellow warning for the whole country yesterday morning.
Thousands of households across the country were left without power for hours.
The west, north-west and south had all been badly hit with areas in Mayo, Leitrim, Galway and Cork affected by faults.
ESB Networks had been working to repair faults as quickly as possible. More than 1,400 homes and businesses in Carrick-on-shannon and surrounding areas in Leitrim had been left without power.
And there were major outages in Clifden, Co Galway, as well as Arklow in Co Wicklow, some areas in Co Louth and faults in Co Waterford and Co Tipperary.
Met Eireann has said today will be a blustery and windy day and will be mostly cloudy over the northern half of the country with spells of showery rain.
It’s to be brighter further south with sunshine and showers expected.
Temperatures are set to be between 12C and 16C accompanied with fresh, gusty westerly winds, which will be strong to gale force in the northwest.
Tonight outbreaks of rain are expected in Ulster and north Connacht.
The rest of the country will be mainly dry with a fair amount of cloud.
Lowest temperatures of 7C to 9C with fresh, gusty westerly winds, gradually moderating.
Tomorrow will be mainly dry, apart from one or two showers in the north and north-west.
The best of the sunshine will be over the southern half of the country and highest temperatures will range from 15C in the west to 20C in the east.