Local authorities are on “full alert” as further flooding is expected later this week, with areas in the south and east of the country forecast to be the “worst affected”.
Following further showers on Tuesday, Met Éireann said flood risks could, based on the latest projections, last “well into next week”.
Keith Leonard, national director for Fire and Emergency Management, said the entire Leinster area was “of concern”, particularly Dublin and Wicklow, which could be badly affected by flooding on Thursday evening.
He said local authorities are on “full alert” for further flooding this week, particularly in Dublin, and are working together in an attempt to “maximise the response”, especially at that “key time” from Thursday into Friday morning.
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Leonard said he expected “Thursday night is going to definitely be a pinch point” due to a combination of rainfall, “very high tides” and onshore winds.
[ How to stay up to date with river levels, flood risk and forecastsOpens in new window ]
Areas that have previously experienced significant flooding in the south and east could see further floods this week and “even beyond”, he told RTÉ Radio 1’s News at One.
“We’re in really a protracted response to this event at this stage,” he added.
While extremely high accumulations of rain are not expected over the coming days, “it’s not going to take much to cause the flooding”, said Met Éireann meteorologist Rebecca Cantwell.
“Soils are saturated, rivers are at or above bank-full conditions, and then, over the next few days, we’ve got high tides to deal with as well,” she said, reiterating that areas in the south and east will be among the “worst affected”.
It comes as parts of the country, including in counties Dublin, Wicklow, Louth and Waterford, experienced further localised flooding on Tuesday during a status yellow rain warning.
Dublin City Council on Tuesday evening said flood gates along the river Dodder would remain closed until further notice. Car parks along the coast at Sandymount and Clontarf have also been closed.
Wicklow County Council advised that several roads across the county had been closed on Tuesday due to an “ongoing response situation”.
Meanwhile, “aquadams” were transported to Enniscorthy, Co Wexford, on Tuesday to protect against further floods in the coming days.
Fianna Fáil councillor Aidan Browne said it was the “first step”, noting that further interim measures were under discussion between Wexford County Council and the Office of Public Works (OPW).
The construction of temporary flood defence banks is due to begin this week in Bridgetown, Co Wexford. The village has repeatedly been hit by flooding in recent years.
Toddy and Tara Roche, a couple who run the Kilmore Seafresh shop in the village, said they hoped the temporary solution would work after losing tens of thousands of euro worth of stock and equipment over the past 12 years.
Their seafood shop was, for a third time, flooded last week after a deluge of rain during Storm Chandra.
“The news has lifted our hearts a little bit,” Toddy said of the interim measures.
“The council is to build up banks around our place near the canal. What they are going to use is soil – hopefully it will hold and have time to bed in before we are faced with any more flooding.”
Separately, an upgrade of Met Éireann’s rainfall radar network, which is expected to be operational by 2030, is expected to result in more detailed forecasts, according to senior forecaster Gerry Murphy.
Murphy said an additional five radar systems are planned for counties Donegal, Kilkenny, Roscommon, Cork and Meath.
“That will lead to more detail on rainfall, with better warnings as a result,” he said.
