Flash floods after gales and torrential rain
ALMOST 1,000 homes lost power, dozens of roads were closed due to flash flooding and thousands of acres of farmland were left under water as Ireland was battered by an Atlantic storm front with torrential rainfall and galeforce winds.
Flooding was reported across Cork, Kerry, Waterford and Tipperary as almost 100mm of rain fell on mountains across the south-west in just over 18 hours – with around 80mm hitting low-lying areas.
High winds also brought down trees and electricity poles as winds gusted to 100kmh.
Worst hit by the power outages were Cork, Kerry, Waterford, Tipperary and Roscommon, with ESB repair crews beginning emergency work once conditions allowed. A road was also blocked in Tallaght, Dublin, by a fallen tree.
Gardaí confirmed the worst of the flooding hit rural roads, with councils having closed more than a dozen flood-prone routes on Monday night as a safety measure.
The rivers Lee, Blackwater, Funshion and Suir all broke their banks under the deluge, with thousands of acres of farmland now under flood waters.
The greatest concern is focused on the next 24 hours as the rainfall from mountain streams surges into major river drainage systems.
The ESB began extra discharges from its Inniscarra Dam in Cork in anticipation of major water flows over the next 48 hours into the reservoir – with flooding already downstream along the Lee Fields and Carrigrohane.
Cork city’s flood plan was activated and the Defence Forces were on standby together with emergency pumping crews.
Sandbags, gel bags and flood gates were erected around low-lying parts of Cork city centre. Cork City Council Director of Services David Joyce said that, so far, major property damage was avoided.
“There is a significant rain event happening which involves heavy pulses of rain coming across the south-west,” he said.
“That has led to significant surface water flooding and localised flooding.
“We are awaiting to see what will happen with the rainfall event this evening and the dams filling up.
“We will be working closely with the ESB to monitor the dams and to ensure that releases are matched to river levels across the city.”
Across Cork county, roads were flooded in Shanagarry, Cloyne, Dunmanway, Mallow, Cloghroe, Glanmire, Kanturk and Macroom. In Kerry there was heavy flooding on roads in Tralee, Fossa, Cahir, Beaufort and Kilgobnet.
Gardaí and the Road Safety Authority (RSA) pleaded with motorists to undertake only essential journeys and to drive with extreme care.
Met Éireann said the weather will improve from this morning, but the 24-hour rainfall will result in significant flooding because of the saturated nature of the land and the already swollen levels of rivers and lakes.
However, the good news is that Ireland can expect more settled weather from tomorrow. The indications are that next weekend will see dry conditions, spells of good sunshine and milder temperatures.