Storm Chandra: More flooding possible as rain warnings issued for six counties
Ellen O'Donoghue and Vivienne Clarke
Met Éireann has warned that more flooding is possible as it issued a status yellow rain warning for Carlow, Dublin, Kilkenny, Wexford, Wicklow, and Waterford.
The warning will take effect at midnight tonight and last until midnight on Thursday night/Friday morning.
The weather forecaster said further heavy rain and showers falling on saturated ground, combined with high river levels, may cause the following localised flooding, river flooding, and difficult travel conditions.
It comes after Minister for Housing James Browne said that Met Éireann will be held accountable for its role in providing timely alerts about storms.
Speaking on South East radio, the Enniscorthy TD said: “I think we will be bringing Met Éireann in and say that there needs to be an understanding here that information is not to be guarded, information is to be put out there, and we need to do a much better job of communications.
“But also what we've asked Met Éireann to do as well is to look at how they bring these warnings, yellow, orange, red warnings. It's based on a mathematical formula, whereas in other countries, they use the mathematical formula but then they also make a judgment call.
“I think there needs to be a greater use of that judgment call as well, I think in terms of being able to warn people what is coming down the line.”
Mr Browne emphasised the growing unpredictability and severity of weather events and the need for extreme measures to protect communities. While acknowledging that earlier warnings may not have prevented the flooding, Mr Browne stressed the need for clearer and faster communications by Met Éireann.
It comes as those worst hit by floodwaters during Storm Chandra on Tuesday have been told to apply for emergency payments.
The cleanup from the devastation caused by Storm Chandra is underway, but for many, the disruption and trauma caused is continuing.
The National Emergency Co-ordination Group has warned that flooding may remain in some areas through Wednesday and into Thursday.
Although Chandra has now passed over the country, more rain has been forecast, and flooding could persist if it falls on already saturated ground.
People have been advised to check Local Authority websites and social media channels for information on road closures, flooding updates, and community alerts.
Mark Bowe, Meteorologist from Met Éireann, has warned that people should remain vigilant even though it has stopped raining.
Speaking on Newstalk Breakfast about the impact of Storm Chandra, Mr Bowe said that while the weather should improve today, conditions will remain unsettled for the next few days.
“Thankfully, the storm has pushed off to the far north. So we are in a bit of a dry slot at the moment, but looking ahead for the next couple of days, especially today and into tomorrow, we are going to see some light patchy rain at times, more significant rain moving into parts of the Southwest," Mr Bowe said.
Because river levels are so high and the land is so saturated, he added, people should still stay vigilant over the next few days even though it has stopped raining.
“The weather should actually improve today. We'll only see some light passing showers across parts of the east today, but the weather overall is actually going to stay unsettled for the next couple of days.
“We're going to see patchy rain at times. We'll see some showers coming in. We've got a front moving over on Thursday that will bring some more rain. So bear in mind that, like I was saying, the ground is already quite saturated, so there's not a significantly longer dry spell, at least over the coming few days for that to happen."
Meanwhile, an emergency response fund has been made available to those whose homes and businesses were worst hit by Chandra in counties Wicklow, Wexford and Dublin.
Phase 1 is not means-tested and will cover the cost of replacing essentials like food, clothing and bedding.
Other phases of the scheme are means-tested and can be used for the replacement of furniture and structural repairs.
Keith Leonard, Director of the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management, called on motorists not to use roads that have been marked as closed following Storm Chandra.
Mr Leonard was speaking on Newstalk Breakfast and RTÉ radio’s Morning Ireland, outlining conditions throughout the country and assistance available to individuals and businesses.
The areas most affected by the storm were Aughrim, Co Wicklow, along with Bunclody, Enniscorthy in Wexford and south Dublin, Dún Laoghaire, Nutgrove, Sandyford, Firhouse, and Louth and Laois.
"Hopefully most routes now will have improved and bus services should be back in operation in most areas, but there are still some smaller roads that are closed due to flooding and impacts right across the region," Mr Leonard said.
"From a public safety perspective, we had a number of people who were rescued from cars yesterday, so we would ask people where roads are marked off as closed not to use those roads under any circumstances."
Mr Leonard outlined that homeowners who are affected by the storm can access support from the Community Welfare Offices through the Department of Social Protection (telephone number 08 18 6070 80).
