CONDITIONS:MOTORISTS FACED treacherous conditions on roads throughout the country yesterday and parts of the south are braced for further flooding as heavy rain is forecast for the weekend.
Road users using approach roads into Galway city yesterday morning were delayed by up to three hours as a result of freezing fog and icy roads. The worst-hit areas were in north Co Galway where heavy snowfall was compounded by sharp frost to make conditions extremely difficult.
It took some motorists more than two hours to travel along the N17 from Tuam to Galway city, a journey that normally takes about half an hour. Freezing fog and black ice hampered drivers on the N18 Ennis road, the N6 Dublin road, N59 Clifden road, the M6 at Ballinasloe and the Headford road.
Other routes where ice caused problems included the N67 Kinvara/Kilcolgan road; the N66 Gort/Loughrea road; the N65 from Gortymadden to Loughrea and the N59 Mayo/Galway road near Oughterard. Galway County Council urged drivers to restrict travel to essential journeys.
Gardaí in north Galway advised motorists to drive with extreme caution and to only make journeys if they were absolutely necessary.
Elsewhere in Connacht, there were difficult driving conditions in Roscommon and Mayo. Roscommon County Council issued a warning to motorists and, while most national and regional roads in the county were gritted, there was concern about local roads, which were covered with heavy snow.
The roads were not gritted and driving conditions were very hazardous, the council said.
Black ice was a problem in south Mayo with sections of the N17 extremely dangerous. The situation was the same in many other areas of the country, with road users warned of foggy conditions and urged to use fog lights.
Meanwhile local authorities in Cork city and county were bracing themselves for flooding after Met Éireann forecast heavy rain for today and tomorrow for the south and southwest.
Cork County Council northern division senior engineer Aidan Weir said council staff in Mallow and Fermoy were again preparing for the possibility of the Blackwater bursting its banks.
“Much will depend on the intensity of the rainfall and over what period it falls,” Mr Weir said.
Elsewhere in Co Cork, very dense fog was reported at Midleton, while motorists attempting to travel on the R627 between Midleton and Tallow faced icy conditions and bad potholes.
Gerald Fleming of Met Éireann predicted heavy rainfall of 40-50mm today and tomorrow which would accelerate the melting of snow on higher ground and could result in localised flooding, with the south and southwest most affected.