October hits hard as heavy rains cause road closures across south Kerry

SIGNIFICANT disruption has been caused to Kerry’s roads after heavy rainfall hit the county on Monday night, with south and parts of west Kerry worst affected by the severe weather conditions.

It followed the issuing of a Status Orange weather warning by Met Éireann for the county on Sunday night.

A landslide took place overnight on Monday at Coomanaspig, resulting in a full closure to traffic on the R566 between Portmagee and Ballinskelligs.

A council spokesperson told The Kerryman that the road could be closed for a number of days, depending on the results of a damage assessment due after its clearage.

A less serious landslide also took place at Gortmaloon, also leading to a road closure in Glencar.

At Dromid, the Dromcair Bridge was closed at the time of writing, and the Waterville side of the Ballaghasheen Pass had been badly hit by flooding.

There was a closure to the R565 towards Portmagee village at Lative due to flooding, but the Council had deemed the road passable by 10.30am on Tuesday.

The Inny Bridge on the N70 between Cahersiveen and Waterville was also fully re-opened to traffic by 12.30pm yesterday (Tuesday) having been affected by flooding, but council personnel remained on site amidst the possibility of further flooding.

Civil Defence personnel, with assistance from volunteers, were at hand in the Cahersiveen area at the time of writing to assist with any issues as they arose.

Many routes on the Corca Dhuibhne Peninsula were also badly hit by the severe conditions, with spot flooding and surface water on many routes in the area.

Met Éireann had lifted Kerry’s Status Orange by 3pm yesterday (Tuesday). A spokesperson for the meteorological service told The Kerryman that they expected conditions to clear as the night drew closer, and did not anticipate much rainfall for the remainder of the week.

Kerry County Council said that they continue to monitor the situation closely, and urged motorists to exercise extreme care on all roads, particularly on the Iveragh and Dingle Peninsulas. Emergencies can be reported to the Council on (066) 718 3588.