Concerns for workers and customers saw shops close in advance of storm
SHOPS and businesses throughout the county went into lockdown as hurricane Ophelia made its way up from the south on Monday.
While Sligo awoke to calm conditions on Monday it soon became clear from listening to the various national broadcasts that it would be much safer to remain indoors than venturing out, even for work.
The advice from the National Emergency Co-ordination Committee in Dublin to the public from Sunday evening and all through Monday was to stay safe. The Taoiseach Leo Varadkar also warned people not to underestimate the strength of the storm.
Sligo was in a position to assess the impact of the hurricane as it hit the south of the country first around 8am and travelled up over the country over the preceding hours.
Businesses and shops which opened on Monday didn’t remain so for too long.
The centre of Sligo looked deserted on Monday morning as did other towns and villages around the county.
With so few people around and with concerns mounting for staff and customers most employers opted to close up for the day.
A selection of the signs placed in several shops around Sligo are pictured above.
Initially, Tesco was open in Sligo but following contact from workers’ union, MANDATE it closed at lunch time.
A spokesperson said all workers who were due to work on Monday but were unable to turn in due to difficulties travelling or for other reasons would be paid.
Services across a range of sectors returned to normal on Tuesday.