Flood risk is again “very high” across the east and southeast in the coming days, with problems expected to peak on Tuesday and Wednesday, Keith Leonard of the National Emergency Co-ordination Group (NECG) has said.
Status yellow rain warnings are back in place for five counties – Carlow, Cork, Kilkenny, Waterford and Wexford – on Monday night from 9pm. The warning persists into Tuesday, when additional warnings come into place for Dublin, Louth and Wicklow.
The heavy rain comes on already saturated ground, with local floods from Rathfarnham in Dublin to south Wexford and Waterford over the past seven days. Towns in Carlow and Kilkenny continued to deal with damage from rising water over the bank holiday weekend.
Saturday and in particular Sunday saw some let-up in the persistent heavy rainfall, but that is expected to end on Monday night, Met Éireann forecast.
“We were hoping for some respite over the weekend, there was a small amount of headroom, but I think we’re back into really difficult conditions this week,” the emergency co-ordinator told RTÉ.
He said local authorities had fully deployed their response crews to prepare for any further incidents. “They’re unblocking culverts and gullies,” he said. “They’re in some places operating pumping operations and putting in temporary flood defences to known areas of flooding and really taking every action they can, including mutual support from local authorities that are less affected.”
“I think Tuesday and Wednesday are going to be probably the peak levels,” he said, with “a little bit of lag” before rainfall washes through the river catchments.
ESB on Saturday issued a statement highlighting that it may need to release water from the State’s largest artificial reservoir, the Poulaphouca reservoir, due to very high levels.
The reservoir drains into the river Liffey, which flows through many populous towns before reaching the sea at Dublin. The Clane and Newbridge areas in Co Kildare were highlighted as potentially facing flood risk due to releases.
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“The ESB has been letting off water over the weekend and will probably be letting off excesses of water into the coming week,” Leonard said. He said the NECG was co-ordinating with the ESB, which runs the reservoir, and local authorities over controlled releases.
“We’re hoping that can be managed without any significant flooding to properties, but there will definitely be flooding and overtopping over a lot of land in that area.”
There was nervousness across Leinster at the weekend about the prospect of further disruption after several towns saw flooded quays and other damage.
Michael Doran, of Doran’s SuperValu in flood-prone Graiguenamanagh, Co Kilkenny, said on Sunday that the town was left wondering why promised mitigation measures had yet to materialise.
“Eight years ago Kevin ‘Boxer’ Moran made funding available for the scheme but we are still in the same position,” he said.
Graiguenamanagh continued to deal with damage from rising water over the bank holiday weekend. Photograph: Nick Bradshaw
“Last week the council and fire brigade crews worked around the clock to help businesses and householders to stop a repeat of so many floods in the past.”
In addition to the yellow rainfall warnings, Met Éireann has included an advisory on its website in respect of the flood risk.
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“Spells of heavy and persistent rainfall will continue through the week of February 2nd,” it said, “particularly in southern and eastern coastal counties.”
“Rain will fall on saturated ground where river levels are high with high tides expected this week. This will lead to further flooding along rivers and in coastal areas.
“Close monitoring of local weather conditions via met.ie and river gauge data waterlevel.ie is strongly advised.”